Several Ways to Die Trying
by WitchGirl
Summary: 15 years after the fall of the Titans, their old leader comes across a Banshee’s prophecy of death. Reuniting with a rising angel, a broken machine, a jaded ghost and a fallen demon, they fight one last battle, not just to save the city, but the world
1. Prologue: Darkness Becomes You

Several Ways to Die Trying

**Summary: **Fifteen years after the fall of the Titans, their old leader comes across a Banshee's prophecy of death. Reuniting with a rising angel, a broken machine, a jaded ghost and a fallen demon, they fight one last battle, not just to save the city, but the world.

**Author's Note: **The trouble with love and friendship is that you can never know what the other person is thinking and feeling, not entirely. For the longest time I've been wanting to write a meaningful, action-packed adventure story, with love and friendship adding to a large chunk of it. If Raven did fall in love, assuming she would ever let herself do such a thing, could the one thing that makes life so beautiful for everyone else make her see the wickedness in her own soul? Using this tangent, I spun a dark tale of betrayal, forgiveness, love, death and heartache. A forbidden romance blossoms, unrequited love tries so hard to thrive, certain friendships turn into loving kinships, an evil is unlocked inside a desperate soul, and a man's denial threatens the world. Literally. There are several ways to die trying. Here, you should find them all.

This is a birthday present to me (yay!). My newest saga. Read at your own risk, and tell me as it progresses if it's too dull for the "action" genre ;-).

Prologue: Darkness Becomes You

__

Senior Memories

**Name:** Garfield "Beast Boy" Logan  
**Activities:** Member of the Prank War with Cyborg; President of the "Lets Annoy Raven" Club; Champion of the Video Game Tournament (take THAT, Cy!); And, well, you know, Homecoming King, Prom King– Haha, you wish; Also saving the world, from time to time.  
**Best School Memory:** Probably accidentally falling into Raven's head with Cyborg. Then again, that was pretty scary.  
**Favorite Band:** Bare Naked Ladies, New Found Glory  
**What You'll Miss Most:** That look on Cyborg's face every time I beat him in video games!  
**Often Caught Saying:** "I _am_ the Tofu King!"  
**Favorite Quote:** "I am thankful for laughter, except when milk comes out of my nose."– Woody Allen

* * *

It had all happened so fast, for all of them. 

"I would never hurt you. I would never hurt any of you."

The words rang in his ears as he watched the shadow of a friend fall to his death from the top of the tower. He saw him crash, stared at the mangled corpse in disbelief. He looked up at the figure, glowing with dark energy, floating above the high tower looking down. Her hands were raised toward the lightning-ridden sky, drawing power from the storm. Or perhaps the storm drew power from her.

"I will do anything in my power to save any of you from harm. I've never known people like you. Gentle, compassionate... Friends."

The clips of conversation kept coming back to him, even as he saw her brought back down to earth by the man she loved the most.

"Raven!" The name rang out like a gunshot above the thunder of the storm. From the ground, Cyborg looked up to see the demon tackled in the air by a swift shadow, engulfing her like darkness in an eclipse, pulling her down, lower, lower, until she was beneath who she used to be. Or had she done that on her own...?

"I have never known life like I know it with you. It's taken me years of fighting to understand this feeling. Fighting villains, fighting darkness, fighting myself and fighting you. Fighting everything, denying the chance to look beyond... everything."

Cyborg looked around to see his other friend sanding over the corpse, gaunt as a ghost, her red hair plastered to her face as her eyes widened, deeper than chasms, and more infinite than emerald fields of the countryside which stretched to the horizon. She had seen the darkness and it had humbled her. This delicate creature who should never know heartache was breaking. She had seen the darkness and she couldn't break it back.

"Side by side, day by day, but still I swore you could never know me. But you know me. You've always known me. All of you, you're more a part of me than my own body."

Slowly, very slowly, Starfire backed away, her toes barely touching the ground as she floated there, dumbstruck and scared, tears too distant to the misery she knew to spill down her cheeks with the muddy raindrops. She looked up at Cyborg like a doe in the headlights, and then he swore she began to fade, like a waif dissolving into the dim light of an alley, loveless, homeless, lifeless. She floated there like a ghost a few moments more, and then she landed, her feet planted firmly on the ground and stood there, anchored to the earth, wings clipped and eyes jaded.

"You are my arms, my legs, my head, my heart. You are me."

She took one last look at Cyborg and then looked up at the roof where the battle waged on between man and demon. And then, she turned her back on him and walked towards the water. When she reached its edge, she just kept going, her feet skimming its surface.

And that was the last he ever saw of her.

_"You would give the world to save me. And now, I think– I_ know_– more passionately and more positively than I've ever known anything in my life..."_

Cyborg looked up again at the roof of the tower, watching the battle until finally, their valiant leader took her by the collar and threw her into the very hell dimension she had just opened. In an instant, the portal closed, the storm ended, and the demons unleashed hid in the darkness of the city below. Their leader stood there, out of breath, looking out over the city, knowing in the depths of his soul that there were millions of demons out there and it was his duty to slay them all.

Just as Cyborg knew, in the depths of his soul, that the second Robin showed no mercy on their old friend was the second he had lost him to the darkness forever.

"... That I would give the world and more just to keep you here with me."

With a sad sigh and his heart heavy with the memory of her, he turned away from the tower himself, and walked away, the ghost of a goodbye dying on his breath...


	2. The Nameless One and the Ghost

**_Author's Note:_** Haha, yes, me here again. SORRY for the long lag in updating. To tell you the truth, (I'm on chapter six with writing, so that's not the issue) I am not liking how this story is turning out. It seems too much dialogue, too much explination. Argh. But I'm too lazy to change it. The mark of a mediocre writer I suppose. I often thought of abandoning it, taking it off, starting a different story, but I figured I owed it a shot. So here is my ATTEMPT to write a good, meaningful piece. The idea of the end was its saving grace, because I have that all planned out. It's just a question of getting there, and if you can stick through that, you can stick through anything ;-)

Chapter One: The Nameless One and the Ghost

* * *

**Name:** Tim "Robin" Drake  
**Activities: **Leader of the Teen Titans.  
**Best School Memory:** Foiling Slade for the last time. That's gotta be the best.  
**Favorite Band:** Staind, Goo Goo Dolls  
**What You'll Miss Most:** Friends– My life source.  
**Often Caught Saying:** "Titans, GO!"  
**Favorite Quote:** "A useless life is an early death."– Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

* * *

****

Fifteen years later...

She looked behind her, seeing if he was following. But he was being a good little demon hunter and she smiled, gleefully. She couldn't see him, but she felt him, he was there. He was drawn to her. Eventually, the shadow would step out from the darkness that became him and into the light in order to save it. He will be the fabled Robin of the past once more to take on an evil only a pure child's heart can conquer. But she'd had enough of the cliches. And she'd had enough of running.

She jumped up onto the nearest roof and with her tuned ears she listened to his grappling hook follow her up. She walked to the middle of the roof and raised her arms out like wings, turning around in a circle, her pale hair shining like white gold in the pallid glow of the moon. She began to chuckle, sounding eerily insane. Eventually, she stopped and faced him head on with her violate eyes and a knowing grin.

"Come out, little black bird, I know where you hide."

"Oh?" said a voice in mock surprise as a dark figure stepped out of the blackness that shrouded him. "And where would that be?"

Her smile broadened. "In time," she said. "In the memories you refuse to remember, or to forget."

"Ah, I see, you don't speak English," said the dark hero. "So tell me, which dimension are _you_ from, sweetheart?"

She took a deep breath and parted her lips, bearing her fangs. "I come from no dimension. I serve she that is time. I bear her message."

"Chrona," he whispered, almost disappointed as he looked down and to the side. "And what does Lady Time want with me?"

"She speaks the ancient tongue of the future," she whispered. She closed her eyes and tilted her head towards the sky, a pleasurable smile crossing her features. "Aaaah... I can hear her now."

There was an odd silence as the hero stared at her.

"That's, uh, great and all, that you can hear her, but what does she want with me?" the hero asked.

She inclined her head towards him, her violate eyes shining and her fangs glittering. "She calls to you too," she said. "She calls you by your true name."

"I have no true name," the man spat, angrily.

"Ah, we all have true names," she said. "Even I. I am kalacta'a; she who wails."

"A banshee," said the demon hunter with a sigh. "Of course. One of Chrona's shrieking messengers. So, just tell me the time and place so I can get things in order. Just don't tell me how, because that's something I _don't _want to know."

The banshee nodded. "You do not fear death," she noted.

The demon hunter pushed back his shoulders and took a deep breath. "I don't talk much either."

"Foolish human," she laughed. "I have not sung your requiem. Not yet. You have much to do before she sends me to hum your hymn. You serve a greater purpose than just to live. It has been foretold. You are not part of the human world. But you must save it."

"I save it every damn day," he said. "And I'm getting bored. So..." and he drew his sword, "I'll give you five seconds to convince me not to cut your head off."

"The demon child was right, you will never learn patience. And you will never know love."

In an instant, the angry human was at the beast's throat with his blade, breathing heavily from the fury that fueled him. "You're not doing a very good job of keeping yourself alive, are you?"

"Ah, the kalacta'a struck a nerve... You are weak when it comes to the child," said the creature, not looking alarmed in the least.

"She is no child," hissed Robin.

"No," said the creature, her smile gone. "She never really was. No one ever let her be one. Which is why she turned."

"You're five seconds are up," said the hero as he pressed the sword against her jugular. The banshee merely cackled. In a nanosecond she was behind him and he had to blink.

"Silly human," she said. "You do not know what you are dealing with. Strange how the fate of the world rests in your naive hands and your hands alone. You must contact the demon. Persuade her to your side again, as you once did years ago, and fight beside her."

"Why would she ever go for that plan..." said the hero, sounding bitter.

The banshee smiled and caressed his cheek. "To preserve everything you strive to protect. And to destroy everything she strives to defeat. You share a common interest."

"What's going on?" the hero asked, at last realizing a larger picture. The creature smiled mysteriously.

"You must call the demon. And then, you must find the broken spirit and join with him. He is less dead than you think."

"Broken spirit?" the demon hunter interrupted. "What are you... Oh."

"Together," the banshee continued, unwavering, "the three of you will overcome the growing darkness. Chrona is on your side, she does not wish for the darkness to win."

"Let me get this straight..." said the hero. "You want me to find Raven and Cyborg. And you expect them to just join me for some unknown cause fighting some unknown evil for a damn unseen time demon?"

"Chrona is no demon," said the banshee. "She brings life. She brings light. And she is everywhere."

"Whatever," said the hero, rolling his eyes. "I'm tired. I'm going home." He turned his back and began to walk away from her, paused, then spun around and sliced the demon's head off.

Returning to the dilapidated tower seemed harder than normal that night. He looked at the tattered newspaper clippings that covered the walls of the old living room, which was hardly a room to be lived in now. "Teen Titans Save the Day Again," or "Robin Leads Another Successful Mission." He smiled wanly at them, old memories he tried so hard to forget, yet always strived to remember fully, that feeling he'd gotten from them, that sense of belonging, friendship, purpose... love.

Within two seconds there was another dent in the wall and more new wounds on the old hero's knuckles. He sighed as he stared at the wall, scattered with dented plaster and peeling paint chips.

"I really gotta stop kicking the shit out of this wall," he sighed, shaking his head.

She had been wrong. She had always been wrong. He had known love stronger than she could ever handle. It was she, Raven, who didn't know what she was talking about. It was he who had done the right thing for their team, the kindest thing, the safest thing. There was no one alive who could make him feel the way she could. Which was ironic, seeing as she despised feeling almost as much as he used to. Which is how he'd known that she felt it too.

It had never really been her fault. A creature like her could have never understood love's full power, the ideas and passion it unlocked inside a person. Love can drive a person mad. And don't think for a second it doesn't have a similar effect on a half demon.

But soon enough, he remembered what she'd done and he forgot about her in an instant, forgot what they had done to her. What _he_ had done to her. She had taken everything from him. Beast Boy, Cyborg... Starfire... Whether directly or indirectly she stole his friends away from him and left him stone cold and alone on that rooftop. And he would always hate her for it. Hate her for loving him and ruining everything.

Forgiveness was never an option for anyone. No one can ever be forgiven until they forgive themselves. And we're always the hardest on ourselves.

He tried to banish the banshee's words from his memory, but they rang in his head like the voices that sang his destiny. The voices that he'd tried so hard to get rid of, with pills and shrinks, even shamans and exorcists. But they never left him. They plagued him with whispers of honor and duty, somehow knowing and divulging where the criminals were hiding, aiding him. He learned to live with them and became invincible with them on his side, anticipating an opponent's move. Only now, he found, they were silent.

How strange that the one time he screamed for noise, he was given only dead silence. Silence enough to think about the banshee's words, no, _Chrona's_ words, spoken through the demon, or so she claimed. His research had shown that banshees were deceiving, often speaking in riddles to give their victims a false sense of security. The most famous was the banshee who told the Scotsman in 1614, "You will die by a Loch's deadly blow." He avoided lakes, only to be murdered days later by the husband of a woman he philandered with– a locksmith, who beat his head in with none other than an iron lock

But it was no secret that the Banshees did Chrona's bidding. Why would the time demon need his help to save a world she had so much fun trying to destroy?

"Wow, man, you really have the dark and brooding thing down, don'tchya?"

The old Titan spun around and looked all over the room but found nothing.

"Aw, come on, dude, you know better than to just _look_ for me!"

He frowned, confused. _It's a memory_, he thought._ Somewhere in my head._

"Can't say I'm another voice in your head either, cause we all know _that's_ not true."

"Who are you?" the jaded hero demanded at last, becoming angry.

"Come on, Rob, don't play games."

"It seems you're the one playing games with me," he said, drawing his long sword. "Now show yourself so I can kill you."

He jumped when something tapped him on the shoulder and spun around to see the last person he could accept, all though the first he should have expected.

"You can't do that," said his old friend. "We both know I'm already dead."

The old Titan's eyes widened in shock and for the first time in fifteen years, he wavered, and his sword crashed to the ground with a clatter.

"Who are you?" he demanded, furiously. "And why do you have the nerve to try and look like... like..."

Meanwhile, his green friend walked around the room, looking around. "Hm. I, er, can't say I like what you've done with the place. I mean, it kinda needs a Starfire touch, wouldn't you say?"

"You..." said the hero, eyes wide. "You're..."

His companion turned and raised a green eyebrow. "Beast Boy the dead Titan? Believe me, I'm the last one who needs to be reminded of _that_!"

"She... she killed you..." the shocked demon hunter muttered.

Beast Boy laughed. "Ha, yeah. But don't worry, I hold no grudges. But you do, don't you?"

The man in question sighed a weary sigh and Beast Boy shook his head.

"You're getting old, man. Just north of thirty and you're already sprouting gray hairs. Metaphorically, don't worry. It's just... You forced yourself to grow up way too fast. And so did she. That's what screwed you two over. That's why Starfire vanished, why Cyborg left. You handled things all wrong."

"I did what was right for the team!" the old hero snapped.

"Yeah, and a lot of good it did you, right?" Beast Boy retorted. "You. Cold, alone, dark and brooding. Fighting the demons she unleashed on this world on your own, calling yourself _Nightwing_? Come on, Rob, of all the names, _that_? You gotta admit, it's kinda corny."

The one he dubbed Nightwing gave him a wry smile, for once resembling his old self. "Oh? And what kind of a name is Beast Boy?"

"But we're not talking about aliases right now," Beast Boy said, breezing past it. "We're talking about the real you. Who are you, man? You're certainly not Nightwing. You're not Tim Drake, or Batman's sidekick, or even Robin of the Teen Titans either. Those are all names. Beyond that... You're unnameable."

As if to underline his words, an ominous silence followed. The Nameless One took a deep breath.

"Who is anyone, beyond their name?" he said philosophically with a sigh. "No one is who they're named."

Beast Boy laughed. "Yeah," he said. "You say that now. Don't try and get all smart and metaphorical on me, I can see past all that bullshit. You don't see everyone else trying to find themselves in a different name every few years. You don't know who you are. You haven't known ever since the day I died, have you? Ever since the day the Teen Titans officially disbanded. You lost your purpose, you lost your friends, you lost your life, man. And for fifteen years you've been trying to find yourself again, with a new name, a new purpose, and your own shadow as your new best friend Ha, that's what gets me the most. You turned introverted the day she went extroverted." All of a sudden, Beast Boy had an epiphany.

"Wait a minute..." he said as his companion refused to meet his eye. "I've been going about this all wrong, haven't I? You didn't loose yourself with the fall of the Titans... You lost yourself with its cause. You lost yourself... in her, didn't you?"

"What would you know?" the dark hero snapped. The green ghost grinned knowingly.

"Ah, you'd be surprised what being dead does to you," he said. "I know a lot. It's quite fun, actually, knowing things. Hell, if I'da known it was this much fun when I was alive, I would have stopped being stupid a whole lot sooner. Ever play gamestation with a dead president? I'll tell you, that Teddy, he knows how to drive a car..." Beast Boy trailed off at the odd look Robin was giving him. He sighed. "OK, so my sense of humor hasn't aged as much as you have. Truth is, you're brain doesn't automatically rise a few IQ points, you just see a lot of the world when your dead. Things you didn't really have a chance to see when you were alive. Gives yeh a whole different perspective on things. And damn, I'd like to see a trivia quest between me and Cyborg _now!_ I'll show him who's lord of the knowledge!"

"Is there a point to all this ranting?" the old hero asked.

Beast Boy raised his eyebrows and smiled. "Of course. If I'm saying something, there's always a point."

"And what is it?" asked the demon hunter.

There was a pause. "I'm getting to it," Beast Boy snapped.

The man laughed. "You really haven't changed much at all, have you? Not like the rest of us. We're not who we used to be at all."

"Ah, see, that's where you're wrong," said Beast Boy. "Change is relative. You're still you, Rob, despite whatever changes you've gone through. I can call you that, can't I? Robin?"

"It's Nightwing now," said the hero, rather coldly. But Beast Boy shook his head.

"Not for this mission," he said. "The banshee was right. You gotta be Robin for this to work."

"How did you...?"

"Hey, one of the perks of being dead, I get to know what's going on," said the ghost with a grin. "I'm not Robin anymore..." the man sighed.

Beast Boy laughed. "Nope, wrong again! Remember what I said about names? Just like you're never Robin, you're always Robin. Robin was the only time you were ever really anyone. You know that. You changed it because you thought it was the end of an era. Well, I have news for you. We're doing the time warp again, and that means that era's starting up again and I'm gonna need a leader. Can I count on you for that?"

The old hero's eyes were wide. "I think I just understood about every other word you just said."

The ghost grinned. "Great, I think I can take that as a yes." He began to rock up and down on the balls of his feet. _"Damn_, you don't know how _good_ this feels! To be _me_ again, with you guys! Corporeal and everything!"

"What are you doing here, anyway?" the hero asked. "I mean, ghosts don't just randomly show up on peoples doorsteps."

"I was summoned," said Beast Boy. "By some awesome all mighty power, God or Gods or Fate or I don't know what it is, it's just there. And it said to me, it said, 'Beast Boy, get your ass out of that strip club in heaven and go help your friends!' OK, maybe not exactly like that, but–"

"Did I ever tell you that you say things with way too many words?" the old demon hunter laughed.

Beast Boy shrugged. "That's just me, I guess. Hey, Rob, come on, we got work to do. We gotta find Cyborg and Raven and we gotta kick some apocalypse butt!"

As Beast Boy sprinted to the elevator, he paused when he noted his friend wasn't following. He turned around and frowned. "Dude, Robin, aren't coming?"

The ex-Titan paused as he tasted the old name. "Robin..." he said, then smiled. "Yeah. That's it. You bet your ass, I'm coming!"

Beast Boy grinned at his friend, reborn. "Glad to have you back, Robin."


	3. The Broken One

**_Author's Note:_** Thanks for all your encouragement.

Chapter 2: The Broken One

* * *

**Name:** Victor "Cyborg" Stone  
**Activities:** the TRUE Champion of the Video Game Tournament (right back at you BB!)  
**Best School Memory:** Building the T-Car. That baby's not something you easily forget.  
**Favorite Band:** Linkin Park, Tupac  
**What You'll Miss Most:** My car. Duh.  
**Often Caught Saying:** "BOOYAH!"  
**Favorite Quote:** "There are too many people, and too few human beings."– Robert Zend

* * *

The two companions entered a seedy bar with the theme of a sunken ship hull– rusted metal and bolts everywhere. 

"What are we doing here?" Robin whispered to his friend as he was bumped by a large, unfriendly looking guy with the tattoo of a snake on his right biceps.

Beast Boy smiled. "Looking for Cyborg, of course!" he said as he sat down at the bar. Robin joined him looking wary.

Suddenly, there was a crash behind them and Robin sat poised, hand ready to grab his trusty bo staff, but Beast Boy stopped him.

"Yo, Simon!" came a booming voice from behind them. "How many times do I gotta tell you? No throwing furniture in my bar!"

The man smiled at the bartender then picked up the table he'd thrown at the wall to prove some point or other.

Meanwhile, Robin froze.

"I know that voice..." he whispered to himself. Slowly, he turned and his jaw dropped. An old tarnished half robot stood cleaning glasses with a rag, his head down. He had obviously aged, premature wrinkles forming at the corner of his human eye, which had lost some of its spark over the years. The half of him that was machine seemed much the same, however, although it seemed in need of a good shine. But he was still the same man Robin remembered..

"Hey Vic, how about a scotch on the rocks over here, whaddya say?"

He raised his head and smiled at the young blonde who had hollered, whipped out the bottle and expertly poured it in a shot glass while sliding it down the table.

"Not a problem, Sarah. Just be careful how many of those you have this time," he said with a wink. "Remember what Greg did to you after that?"

She rolled her eyes and pulled back her hair, revealing a livid bruise. "Like I need reminding."

"I keep telling you, girl, you gotta get rid of him."

She smiled. "You're always right, Vic, but I don't know. Something about Greg makes me..."

"Crazy?" the bartender offered and laughed. "I know the feeling. There are some people... they can do anything to you and you just can't help but forgive them. Sometimes that's good. Mostly, and especially in your case, it ain't. Believe me, I know. You gotta get out of his apartment and you gotta find someone who wouldn't hurt you even if the world was in jeopardy and he needed to in order to save it. Sometimes, the world just ain't worth it."

Beast Boy was laughing and shaking his head. "Man, you wouldn't believe it, would you? Cy, here, working. If I'd have known he was gonna turn out to be a bar keep, I woulda begged for free drinks in advance. Well, you know, back when I could enjoy them. Damn mortality."

But Robin wasn't listening. The sight of his metallic friend struck an odd sense of awe in him. There he was, his old friend, now fifteen years older and fifteen years wiser, still somehow majestic, even if all he was doing was squirting beer out of a nozzle that he handled like a cowboy's gun.

By now, he was laughing at what some other drunk guy had just said as he turned away from him and Sarah and shook his head as he cleaned more cups, standing right in front of Beast Boy and Robin with his back to them.

"Hey Victor, could you get me a Guinness?" yelled a guy from behind Beast Boy and Robin.

"Sure thing–" Cyborg began as he looked over his shoulder, but paused and dropped the glass he was washing. He frowned at them a moment and Robin felt a little awkward, but refused to look away. Somehow, he felt, that would disrespect his friend.

"... Robin?" he said. Then, a slow smile spread across his features. "Robin!" he boomed, throwing his arms out invitingly. Robin started laughing as Cyborg leaned over the bar and pulled him over it in his embrace.

"Good to see you too, Cyborg," he said.

But the bartender shook his head. "Just Victor again. Like it used to be." Then, his gaze shifted and his grin widened. "Beast Boy, my man! You don't look that much different than the day you died!"

"Well, I try," said Beast Boy with a modest shrug, dusting invisible dust off his shoulder with his hand.

Robin looked between them, confused. "Was I the only one surprised to see a ghost?"

"Had a crazy wizard or something in here a few nights ago," said Cyborg. "He was mumbling something about how the dead will be born again, to look out for an old friend or some such nonsense. There's only one friend I know who's dead, so I just expected..." he shrugged and smiled and slapped Beast Boy's hand. "_Damn, _kid, it's good to see you again!" He laughed and looked up at Robin with his shining human eye and dull robot one. "And you, too, Rob."

"Unfortunately, this isn't a social call," said Beast Boy seriously. "But we're gonna need Cyborg, not Victor."

The old half-robot saluted Beast Boy enthusiastically. "Count me in. Big bad going down, then I want a piece of it. I've been aching for a good battle lately. I kinda miss my crime fighting days."

"You seem to be doing fine," said Robin, looking in the direction of the blonde girl he called Sarah. Cyborg followed his gaze and smiled.

"I still help people, only in a different way. I'm living a pretty good life. Got friends, a roach-infested apartment and little cash. And a job I love. Two out of four ain't bad, if I do say so myself." He smiled as he paused looking at Robin, wondering what his life was like these days. Wondering how he dealt with Raven's turn and Starfire's disappearance. But he didn't ask. Instead, he took a deep breath and said "So, what's going on?"

"Like you said, Big Bad," said Beast Boy. "We're both a little fuzzy on what. All we know is that it's the reason I'm back and it'll end the world."

"Apocalypse stuff, eh?" Cyborg muttered. "You sure Raven isn't involved?"

At the mention of her name, Robin turned away sharply, avoiding his gaze.

Cyborg coughed, uncertainly. "Er... right. Well, then I guess we better get cracking. I can get Alex to cover for me while I'm gone," he said, pulling out his pager. But Beast Boy's eyes were on Robin.

"We have to make one more stop first before we go all out in this battle thing. Someone who's bound to know more about this than the two of us."

"Who?" asked Cyborg. "A source? A diviner, witch, psychic, what?"

Beast Boy grinned. "Yes," he said.

"Yes what?" Cyborg asked, confused. But Robin was looking at him now, his eyes wide.

"We have to find her, don't we?" he said. "I mean, really find her?"

"You knew it would come to this, man," said Beast Boy.

"Yes what?" Cyborg repeated, looking from one friend to another.

Beast Boy stood up, followed by a reluctant Robin. "Well, time to see what all the fuss is about," he said.

"Yes _what_!" Cyborg demanded.

Beast Boy grinned. "We'll fill him in on the way there, shall we?"

"So what have you been doing the past fifteen years, Robin?" Cyborg asked, grabbing a jacket.

But just as they were about to leave, there was a huge crash. Cyborg sighed and turned. "Simon, goddamn it, do you ever learn–?" He stopped when he looked to the door and noticed that it wasn't Simon causing the ruckus.

Screams filled the bar. "Demon! Demon!"

A few men in the bar broke off chair legs and pulled out chains ready to teach the demon a lesson or two. But Robin beat them all to it.

The old Titan swiped the demon across the face with his bo staff. Instantly, the demon fought back with force, extending long sharp claws and slashing Robin across the face, leaving four red scars. Robin ignored the blood on his cheek and mouth and swung his leg up to kick the demon's head, almost breaking his neck with the swift blow, but not quite. The demon lunged at him and he fell to the floor, the claws digging deeper into his shoulder. He raised his knee and used it to kick the beast's stomach and push him off. The demon regained his balance and was on his feet again, a little disoriented. Robin took full advantage of this and extended his bo staff again and attacking full force.

Cyborg turned to Beast Boy. "I take it he's been doing this a lot?"

"Professional Demon Hunter," said Beast Boy. "Calls himself 'Nightwing.' Can you believe it? Nightwing. What a wimpy name."

"It has some dignity," Cyborg replied as Robin continued to bash the demon. "I mean, there are worse names."

Final, Robin succeeded in pinning the demon against the wall with his bo staff across the beast's shoulders. "Who sent you?" he demanded.

"Rob, he's a demon, nobody sent him!" Cyborg called over to him.

Robin only pressed the bo staff up under the beast's chin, threatening to choke. "This is a Koolash demon. A mercenary for hire. And this breed can talk. So speak, you slime ball!"

"Aw, dude, that thing's dripping on my floor!" Cyborg moaned, gesturing at the green goop dripping from the demon's body. "Alex won't like cleaning that up."

The demon's breath was shaking as it retracted its claws. "No employer. I just came in for a beer."

Robin frowned. "What?"

"Honest! Figured the last days on earth, a guy should enjoy himself rather than work," said the Koolash.

"Then why'd you attack me?" Robin asked.

"I believe it was _you_ who attacked me? And hey, I couldn't pass up a good fight when it was just handed to me like that." The demon smiled, baring very jagged fangs.

"Wait," said Beast Boy, stepping up behind Robin. "You said the last days on earth. So, you know the world's going to end?"

"No," said the beast sarcastically. "I have Cancer and I only have a few days to live. Dude, everyone in the dimensions knows Loki's on a rampage."

Behind them, Cyborg started at the name, his eyes wide, but said nothing.

"Loki, who's Loki?" Beast Boy demanded.

"Uh, he doesn't like to make himself known much in this dimension," said the Koolash, hesitantly. "He's just big on ruining the other ones. Doesn't like humans. At all. So if I was you, I'd stay far away from him. No, you don't want anything to do with Loki, bad, bad idea. Bad idea. Did I mention bad? Now can I go now?"

Beast Boy and Robin exchanged looks. With a sigh, Robin retracted his bo staff and put it away.

The Koolash rubbed the place on its neck where Robin had left a red mark. The demon looked over at Cyborg. "So, do I get a drink or what?"

Cyborg shook his head, exasperated. "Just get out of my bar," he said with a sigh and slight smile. The Koolash didn't ask twice as he clumsily ran out the door.

Seconds later, a brown haired guy wearing a tie-dye shirt was in the doorway, looking perplexed.

"Vic, man..." he said, taking in the scene. "What the hell happened here?"

Cyborg walked up to him and handed him a mop and bucket he'd picked up from behind the bar. "Have fun, Alex," he said with a grin, then gestured for his friends to follow him out.

"So," said Cyborg, turning to his companions as he led them to his car. "We can take my wheels. But where to now? Your contact, wizard, shaman whatever?"

Beast Boy looked at Robin who refused to look anywhere but towards the dark. "Yes."

"No," Robin said.

Beast Boy looked at Cyborg and smiled. "Yes."

And they started climbing into Cyborg's car. Perplexed, he finally followed them in, with one last demanding "Yes _what_!"


	4. The Forsaken One

Chapter 3: The Forsaken One

* * *

**Name:** Raven Roth  
**Activities:**... don't mock me  
**Best School Memory: **sitting alone. in my room. alone. oh, and i guess spending time with my friends.  
**Favorite Band:** Mozart, the Ataris, Dashboard Confessional  
**What You'll Miss Most:** keeping people... safe.  
**Often Caught Saying:** get out of my room.  
**Favorite Quote: **"A true friend stabs you in the front"– Oscar Wilde; "It is a man's own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to evil ways."– Buddha

* * *

Cyborg drove the car aimlessly awhile while his friends sat in silence. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore. "You guys do realize that you're going to have to tell me where we're going eventually so I can get you there."

"I'm trying to figure out where we have to go," said Beast Boy, licking his lips. "I have no idea how..."

"I thought you were supposed to be all-knowing. You know, being dead and all," said Robin bitterly.

"Hey, I'd like to call it living impaired, thank you very much!" Beast Boy returned with a smile. "And I'm not all-knowing. In fact, I'm just as stupid as you left me. I've just seen a lot more, become a whole lot less ignorant, that's all. You moping, him pretending to move on," he jerked a finger at Cyborg who gave him a curious glance, "Raven closing herself off from everything..."

"Well if you can see Raven, then you have to know where she is," said Robin, pointedly.

"I do, dumbass," Beast Boy snapped, getting a little irked. "I just don't know how to get there, that's all."

There was a long silence. Finally, Cyborg spoke up. "Um... You said you see things. People and things. Me, Rob, Raven... Well, I was kind of wondering, and I know Robin was too, um, do you know– I mean, have you seen–"

"No," whispered Beast Boy, looking away sharply. "I... I can't find her."

Robin blinked and looked at him curiously, but didn't speak.

"... Which means," Beast Boy continued, "she's just as lost to the spiritual world as she is to the mortal one. Almost like she never existed to begin with. Believe me, I miss her as much as the rest of you. I miss her like hell. She would really be able to brighten up this world right now, wouldn't she? Make everything just a little more easier."

Robin tried to bite back the tears that always rose in the back of his mind whenever he thought of her, and again that pain in his heart blamed everything on Raven. He would never forgive her. Not for what she did to them all. Killing Beast Boy, erasing Starfire from existence, shattering Cyborg's trust in them all and completely ruining his own life. It was all her fault.

_But then again,_ came a nagging thought at the back of his head that reminded him much of Beast Boy._ You were a little to blame too._

"I'm sorry she did that to you, Cyborg," said Robin quietly at last.

"Aw, man," said Cyborg with a smile. "Star never did anything in her life to..." But then, his expression changed and he was sad. "Oh. You mean _her_." But he laughed it off. "Nah, man. Raven... None of this was really meant to happen the way it did, I'm sure of that. We did it to each other. All of us."

Glancing over at him, Cyborg could tell that whatever Robin had wanted to hear, that hadn't been it.

They continued in silence for a while longer before an idea hit Beast Boy straight between the eyes. "She's a _demon_!" he exclaimed.

"Really? I thought she was a butterfly with a bad attitude," Cyborg said sarcastically.

"No," Beast Boy said, as if Cyborg didn't know anything. "I mean, she's a prestigious demon. With followers?"

Cyborg stopped the car and he and Robin both looked at Beast Boy in disbelief. "Raven has... followers?" Robin said.

"Well _duh_!" Beast Boy replied, as if it were obvious. "A girl with her power and knowledge of this dimension? She's bound to get a few weak-minded humans to worship her."

But Cyborg was raising a skeptical eyebrow. "Raven doesn't seem like the type to _want_ to be worshiped..."

"The Raven _we_ knew, maybe," said Beast Boy, seriously. "But this Raven's alone now, lost in her demon self, feeling that's all she is and all she'll ever be. She uses these people. It's pretty depressing, really. She lets them worship her. She doesn't do anything for them. They're just there, doing things for her as she bids it, like she's some sort of God. At first, she'd told them that their idolization was best focused elsewhere and that they were wasting their time. But after awhile, she just stopped caring."

"Hey, you know, I know a group of crazy kids down on 9th who fit the goddess-worshiper description," said Cyborg suddenly. "A few come to the bar on occasion, talking in low tones and giving me threatening looks. All dark and brooding." He glanced at Robin and smiled. "You know, Raven's type. Also they've got that depressive poetry air about them, you know that whole cliche, the world hates me but I don't care kinda thing. Alex, the other bartender, works as a pizza boy during the day and he told me he'd delivered lots of pizzas to their hangout, some abandoned office. He said they creeped him out. All these candles and shit lining their hall."

Beast Boy grinned. "Sounds perfect!" he said. "Lead the way, man."

* * *

They pulled up outside of an old office building, the sign 'Miles Incorporated' hanging by a nail as it swung back and forth over the doorway. Beast Boy stepped forward, aloofly.

"Let me handle this, would you?" he said smugly. He coughed and knocked on the door. A small window slid open and a pair of eyes looked out at him.

"What do you want?" they demanded.

"I've come to pay my respects to the Dark Queen," said Beast Boy, fighting the urge to smile. But the eyes narrowed.

"What do you know about the Dark Queen, lesser being! You are not worthy to approach."

"Oh, and you are?" said Beast Boy, looking at his fingernails. He yawned. "Listen, the old girl and I go way back, just tell her I'm here and I'm sure there'll be no problem."

"Be gone!" said the person beyond the door. "You're not welcome here! Guards!"

Suddenly, Beast Boy began to panic as he raised his hands. "Dude, dude, that's unnecessary! We just want to talk, OK? What harm can that do?"

The eyes narrowed once again. "You wish to talk of what?"

"Of... the Dark Queen. We want to learn more about her. From, er, you. You seem like a smart guy and all, and you must be looked fondly upon by the Queen."

The follower's eyes seemed to soften. It seemed flattery would get Beast Boy everywhere. "Yes, well, I have been following the path for almost a year now. And they _have_ put me on sentry duty, can you imagine? What a big deal– ahem!" he interrupted with a cough. "No, no. If you want to _talk_, you'll have to see the High Priest. He'll know what to do with the likes of you."

Immediately the door opened and the three old Titans stepped inside. Their pretentious sentry was standing proudly before them.

"Come with me, I'll show you to the High Priest of our all mighty Goddess."

As they followed the guard down dark candle-lit hallways, Cyborg leaned in close to Beast Boy. "I thought she was a queen," he whispered.

"That's just what they call her," said Beast Boy. "Ravenism is like some new-age internet religion all these weak-minded kids are getting into. Better than some cult religions, or other demon worshipers. At least Raven doesn't support the whole human sacrifice thing."

"But perhaps She will make an exception, just this once."

Beast Boy jumped at the voice and noticed he was in a large room, bright with black candles and heavy with incense. A cloaked young man sat on a pillow on the floor, his legs crossed. The guard was gone.

"What brings you weary travelers in search of the Divine One."

"Who, Raven?" Cyborg laughed. "She's no more divine than my New York Cheesecake. Aw, if you tasted that, I'd give anything to get me some of that now–"

"You call Her by Her true name!" said the priest, astounded. "You are bold to do such a thing."

"Look," said Robin, stepping forward. "I don't mean to shatter all your dreams, but Raven's no goddess. She's just a person, like you and me. Well, a half-demon person, but a person nonetheless. And we're old friends of hers, trying to find her, because we need her help."

"I will disregard your blasphemy in an act of Divine Forgiveness that She has taught us. If you seek the Dark Queen's aid, you will find it through meditation and prayer. She will reveal Herself to those who are patient. She rewards loyalty."

"Um..." said Robin, beginning to feel uncomfortable. "Not _that_ kind of help. I mean _real_ help. How old are you? Seventeen, eighteen? Most of you here, just teenagers? You were all just kids when the Titans broke up, when your beloved Raven took a life. You don't know anything about her past, do you?"

"She rises from the ashes like the phoenix," the priest replied, unwavering. "Like we all must rise from the ashes of our old lives. She is Divine. She is a model to us all, that we all can be reformed."

"_Con_formed is more like it," Robin said. "This isn't what she wants. This isn't what she _needs_. You're wasting your time. Now bring us to her, so we can see her."

"You fool with your insolence!" screamed the high priest, rising to his feet. "You must pay!"

"I feel so sorry for you and your pathetic followers," said Robin with a scoff.

"Guards!" screamed the high priest.

"That's the second time they've called the guards on us, Rob!" Cyborg moaned.

"Robin!" Beast Boy screamed as robed guards seized his friend by the arms. Immediately, they all halted and backed away, almost afraid. The high priest was on his knees in minutes, bowing before the man he had just called an insolent, blasphemous fool.

"Our apologies, my prince," mumbled the high priest. "If I'd been able to recognize you... We will accommodate your needs right away."

"What did you call me?" Robin asked, dumbstruck.

"Prince?" Cyborg sputtered.

"Why, yes!" said the high priest, sitting up. "You are in the prophecies of the Great One. The one dubbed Robin, she says, will return and bring light."

"Wow, dude, you're in a prophecy!" said Beast Boy, excited.

Robin looked at him and shrugged with a frown. "Hey, it happens," he said, dully.

"How can we serve you?" asked the young high priest, bowing again.

Robin kneeled to his level and grabbed the high priest's shoulder, forcing him to sit up again. "Take me to Raven," he said, simply.

* * *

The door was simple. Ebony black with a brass handle.

"The portal lay just beyond that door," the high priest said with a nod. "There within lies the realm of our all mighty Goddess. There, she will receive you and bless you with her presence. You are truly lucky to be able to behold the glory that is–"

"Yeah, yeah, all mighty, dark queen, whatever you want, she's in there?" Beast Boy said, pushing himself to the front.

The high priest nodded. "Yes. But we might warn you–"

"Aw, we've been dealing for Raven for years, I think we now how to handle her," said Beast Boy, dismissing the high priest with a wave of his hand. The high priest took a deep breath and sighed.

"Very well," he said. "But enter at your own risk."

And with that, he opened the neck of his robe and pulled out a gold chain with a brass key hanging on the end and fit it into the door, turning slowly. Carefully, he opened the door to reveal a swirling black vortex. The old heros exchanged looks before stepping through the doorway.

The room they stood in was windowless and made out of white marble. It seemed to be a corridor that stretched on into forever. Somewhere down the hall, a black figure stood, far away, yet very near.

"Let me guess," came a sardonic voice, almost too close for comfort. The figure walked towards them until it was the shadow of a person, a mouth barely visible under a dark hood. "Some terrible evil is arising and now the Teen Titans must reunite to stop it. God, how cliche."

Robin stepped forward, tentatively, reaching out a hand as if to test if it was all some strange optical illusion. "Raven...?" he queried.

"Don't come closer!" the voice boomed and something rippled as Robin's hand made contact with a powerful force field. He drew away instantly.

In a the breath of a second, they were face to face and Robin could feel her breath, but still her eyes remained hidden. Her lips were chapped and her skin was as pale as he remembered it, but she had grown, as had the rest of them. Two adults stood before each other, grand and arcane, having so much and so little in common. The last time they had faced each other, both had been little more than children, already jaded by the wicked world.

She intimidated him, but he stood firm, observing her physical changes and trying to anticipate her less physical ones. Her powers had grown, that was apparent. He had yet to decide if that was a good or bad thing.

Slick as a panther, she stood cloaked in black, a sliver of darkness in a white temple. She took in the scene with tired eyes, weary of the world and the people in it. There was nothing left here but the darkness, and she had accepted that fact a long time ago. She had committed the ultimate sin, Judas in the darkest level of hell, Terra in her stone coffin. She had betrayed them and so resigned herself as nobly as she could to pay with the ultimate sacrifice. And now, they were trying to interfere with her gloom and despair. How dare they try to save a doomed soul!

"Get out," she hissed in low tones. "I am warning the three of you now. There is nothing alive in this temple. The only thing you can hope to find is nothing."

"We found you, didn't we?" Robin said in a flat whisper. She hissed at him like a cat.

"And thus you have found nothing," she returned. "I am nothing more than the darkness that becomes me."

"Then we do still have something in common," Robin whispered, coolly.

She narrowed her eyes, but he could not see, her face shrouded in shadows. "You are not welcome here."

"We need your help," Robin said, his voice returning to normal volume and reverberating off the marble walls as he assumed his leadership command.

"You need to go home, little boy," the bitter woman replied, angry at his arrogance. "Stop playing these silly games. The Teen Titans are dead. And if the end of the world is coming, what makes you think we're special enough that we can stop it? We are no better than any other hero. It is my understanding that the world has been under threat many a time before and yet it continues to spin. I don't doubt that this time is any different."

"Since when do you leave things up to someone else?" Robin snapped, getting irritated. "Probably around the time you started taking advantage of these poor kids?"

Raven scoffed. "Ha, don't speak of things you know nothing about. These children are here of their own free will. Whatever I tell them, they keep coming, so I have given up speaking to them. I provide a sense of comfort for them and if I can do that for a handful of vapid teenagers, then I am still doing some good in this world."

"This is more than providing comfort. Leading them on, making _prophecies?_" Robin spluttered.

Raven seemed surprised. "Pr-prophecies...?" she said. All of a sudden, she laughed. "Oh. Yes. 'Prophecies.' Robin, I make no prophecies. I rarely speak to the children. When I do, they take every word so seriously, so literally. I mentioned something once in passing, after a bad nightmare, about how you were like Icarus and flew too high into the sun. They took that to mean that you were going to come here and be the sun, or some such nonsense. They twist everything around to mean something profound." She smiled. "Just last week I mentioned a craving for bologna and now they have some grand crusade looking for the Oscar Meyer Weiner Mobile. It can be quit entertaining, the antics of these children."

"Is this what you do in your spare time?" Robin asked. "Mess with kids' heads?"

Raven's lips curved into a condescending smile. "You know little about the affairs of demons, Robin. There is much I attend to."

"You are no demon," Robin returned.

She turned away, for she could no longer face them. "You have no idea..." she whispered.

"Raven," Beast Boy said, finally gathering enough courage to speak up. "You're... I mean..."

But he'd had her at 'Raven.' The demon woman turned around, her cloak fluttering as she looked up at the ghost boy, a wan, nostalgic smile crossing her features.

"Beast Boy..." she said, her voice soft and wistful. "Oh how strange how much I've missed your annoying voice..."

"Um... I'll take that as a compliment," he said, slowly. "Well, listen. You asked what makes us different from other heros, and Robin didn't answer your question. Maybe because he's forgotten what makes us so special, what makes us stand out from all heros, super or otherwise. Together, we're unstoppable, we always have been. Alone, we fare fine, but look at us, look at us all. We're less than half of who we were together. You seem to be clinging to your demon half. Rae, you're human too. You always have been and always will be. But you've never been more human than you were with us. And that's what makes us different. We bring out the best in each other, compliment each other's strengths, cover each other's weaknesses. Together, we were the Teen Titans, and together we will be again. But please. We're not a team without you."

There was a moment of silence as the demon woman stared at the ghost. Finally, she said, "We're not a team without Starfire."

Which was only followed by another period of silence.

She gave an ironic smile. "I take it from your stunned silence that you don't know where she is anymore than I do. We are _not_ a team anymore, Beast Boy. And we never will be again." She turned her back on them and began to walk away when Robin tried one last ditch attempt to win her over.

"It has something to do with Loki!"

The demon stopped in her tracks, but did not turn. Robin grinned at his triumph and tried to remember what the banshee had told him. _To destroy everything she strives to defeat. You share a common interest._ "We share a common interest," he said. "You want to defeat Loki and we want to save the world. When it's over, I swear, you'll never have to see our faces again."

A cold wind seemed to pass as Raven slowly turned and walked toward them again.

"Well," she said, taking off her hood and smiling at them with glowing dark eyes. "Why didn't you say so in the first place?" There was a scar just under her left eye, diagonally traversing the length of her cheek.

"Nice scar..." Cyborg muttered. She smiled at him.

"Yes," she said. "A gift from Loki when we crossed paths five years or so ago. I had already found my place of prestige in the demon world, but he was rising up fast from a minion status. His breed aren't usually smart enough to become leaders. He's a Morlin Demon, used for scut work and such by the more adept demons– like those of Azarath. Needless to say, somehow, he's gotten power, and lots of it. And now, if I understand you correctly, he intends on using it to destroy the world?"

"Pretty much, yeah," Beast Boy said, nodding.

"From what we could gather, anyway," Cyborg added.

"And you're a valuable asset to this team," Robin commented, sounding almost reluctant. "What with all the... inside knowledge on our enemy and all...

Raven looked up at him and, as if just seeing him for the first time, squinted at him in confusion. "Wow, You..." she muttered, then smiled a lopsided smile. "You really need to cut your hair."

He frowned at her in offense and his hands instantly flew up to his long black hair.

"What?" he demanded, insecurely. "What's wrong with my hair?"

But Raven just laughed and shook her head. "Whatever," she mumbled, glancing up at his black costume and only laughing again. "We need to get out of here."


	5. The Exalted One

_**Author's Note:** _Well well, I got a huge response for the last chapter (danka, danka :D). I wanted to reasure anyone who was doubting: STARFIRE WILL DEFINITELY NOT BE ABSENT FROM THIS STORY! I love her too damn much to write her out. She's just somewhere... different. Well, you'll find out IN THIS CHAPTER!Also, about Loki. **Sillymail **said he was the devil. Well, touche, that's true. But **Lord Raven Drackon **mentioned the Norse God, which is who the little demon is named for. AND he has very many things in common with his namesake... The end of the world, for instance. Believe me, Norse mythology DOES play a roll in my storyCongrats for noticing! OK, now on with the story.

Chapter 4: The Exalted One

* * *

**Name:** Koriand'r "Starfire" Star  
**Activities:** Protecting this wonderful planet from any force that threatens it!  
**Best School Memory:** I shall always remember the day Raven and I learned to harmonize with each other instead of continuously misunderstanding one another.  
**Favorite Band: **Roland'rakan (a Tamaranian musician). Oh, and perhaps Clay Aiken.  
**What You'll Miss Most:** Robin. And all of my friends, of course.  
**Often Caught Saying:** "Glorious!" Well, I suppose that's what I often say. For everything is so glorious.  
**Favorite Quote:** "But friendship is precious, not only in the shade, but in the sunshine of life, and thanks to a benevolent arrangement the greater part of life is sunshine." –Thomas Jefferson

* * *

With a little effort, the Titans escaped the Raven shrine. After a few 'hallelujahs' and blessings, as well as a few autographs and bright (if not slightly sarcastic) predictions for individual futures, Raven had freed herself from their starving attention.

When they reached the car, Raven beat Beast Boy to the front seat and he scowled as he watched her get in. Robin grabbed him and tossed him in the back and followed him in.

"So where to now, all-knowing ghost guy?" Cyborg asked, looking at Beast Boy in the rearview mirror.

Beast Boy folded his arms, grumpily. "Ask the demon," he grunted.

Raven was preoccupied with looking out the window, contemplating on just how much humanity she had left in her. And she wondered just how much Robin really blamed her for Starfire's disappearance. How much they all blamed her for everything.

"Hey, you OK?"

The warm voice belonged to the concerned friend sitting next to her, both hands on the wheel but both eyes, human and robotic, were pointed at her in the most sincerity she'd seen for a while. After all she'd done to him, Cyborg made her feel like she still had a friend in him.

She gave him a reassuring smile and nodded. "Everything's as good as it's going to get," she said, honestly. He smiled back at her.

"So do you have any idea where to start on this grand mission of ours?"

Raven sighed and looked away from him, out the window again, where the scenery was not passing by for Cyborg hadn't started driving yet. A strange premonition washed over her and she frowned in confusion. _What could we possibly be missing?_

"There's still one more piece of the puzzle," Raven said. "We can't do anything without that."

Cyborg looked a little nervous but dismissed the expression with a shake of his head. He took a long, deep breath. "OK..." he said, then turned over his shoulder to look at Robin and Beast Boy, whose minds were both elsewhere. "Yo, either of you two have any inside knowledge about the impending apocalypse that you've neglected to tell me about?"

Unfortunately, he had to take their apathetic silence as a stout 'no.'

He sighed and bit his lip, looking back to Raven, unsure of what to do next. "Sorry, Rae. I don't like this though. This whole not knowing what's going on thing? Dammit, if only something started attacking somewhere! Now _that_ I could handle."

All of a sudden, Raven jerked up, wide awake, and grabbed Cyborg by the arm. "Drive!" she ordered.

"But Rae, we don't–"

"Just _do _it!" she demanded.

Immediately, Cyborg stepped hard on the pedal, oblivious to where they were all heading, but flying away on Raven's whim nonetheless. As he drove down the empty street at what must have been three in the morning, he wondered why he'd done it.

Looking over at her, her eyes glazed over and staring straight ahead of her, he knew why. After all these years, after all she had done, and after all they blamed her for, he still trusted her with his life. She knew things he did not, and he accepted this wisdom humbly, for she was a demon and thus had insights into things the rest of them could not comprehend. Such as the ways of a Morlin Demon who was out to destroy the world. And perhaps more. What more, he was unsure of, and he wondered if she even knew. But whatever that wisdom was, it was rearing its head now, and he was forced to obey it.

She began to issue directions when he came to turns and intersections. He smiled, unfazed by the fact that he did still trust her despite all she'd done. Because he knew why. It was as she had told him, fifteen years ago, he knew her inside out. And he knew there was more to the story of her betrayal than she'd let on. Though oblivious as to why, she seemed to like playing the part of the lowly traitor, unwilling to explain herself or even give reason for why she'd done it. She was content to be hated by the people she loved, so long as she never had to relive the story.

Soon, Cyborg thought to himself, _that'll change._

, Cyborg thought to himself, 

"Left," Raven said simply as they came to an intersection. Without comment, Cyborg obeyed and followed the next street, which seemed to be heading down to the wharves. When he reached the water and the road led either left or right and Raven said nothing, he began to turn right.

"No," Raven said simply. Sighing, Cyborg backed up and was about to turn left when she repeated, "No!"

He stopped the car. "OK, Rae, then where do you want me to go?" he asked.

But she shook her head, eyes wide with anticipation. "Wait," she said, looking straight ahead of her out over the sea.

Cyborg glanced in the mirror at his two friends in the back. Robin seemed to be lost in some waking dream and looked as if he hadn't even noticed the car had moved anywhere. Beast Boy was watching Raven intently, as if waiting in eager interest for her next crazy move. But he was silent, which was unlike the young vivacious boy Cyborg remembered. He was also patient, which was definitely not a quality to have been found in the alive version of the spirit he saw before him. Perhaps death changes a man. He wouldn't know. He'd never been dead.

All of a sudden he saw Beast Boy's jaw drop and Robin startle himself out of his trance. The car was filled with white and Cyborg was compelled to turn around. What he saw astounded him.

A miniature silver sun had appeared off of the coast of Jump City. The bright sphere should have blinded them, but they all refused to look away. Something about its glare was warm and gentle, when it should have been harsh and painful. Not a soul in the vehicle shielded their eyes.

Out of the sphere, a figure as bright as diamonds stepped onto the docks. It stepped lightly on the concrete, as if walking on water.

Walking on water...Cyborg thought. All of a sudden, he put the pieces together, the two images in his mind of saints stepping ever so lightly– no, more like _floating_ there, above the water, and above the ground

Cyborg thought. All of a sudden, he put the pieces together, the two images in his mind of saints stepping ever so lightly– no, more like there, above the water, and above the ground 

"Oh my god..." he said in awe-filled recognition.

"The missing piece..." Raven muttered.

He watched a moment longer. Long lean legs covered in a shimmering white fabric stepped one by one out of the white and glowing tresses followed her like some divine shadow as she came towards them.

He heard Beast Boy say the name, but Robin went further, opening the car door and walking ever so slowly, ever so reverently towards their missing link.

They met half way.

It was an interesting sight, this dark figure and this bright angel, standing side by side, life emanating from her fingers as she lovingly caressed his hair. He had stayed stoic until she touched him, where he promptly folded into sobs and tears in her arms. She enveloped him in her glory, hushing him calm with the sweet lullabies of a tender mother. He fell to his knees and she followed him, holding him like a babe, stroking his hair, letting him cry. He leaned his head on her shoulder, a grown man reduced to nothing in her embrace. He did not deserve her care, her love, or so he had convinced himself.

But she did not care what he deserved and what he did not. She had missed him and wanted to hold him like this for so long, that nothing else in the world mattered. She had him in her arms and nearly cried herself. After so many years, her love for him was just as great and just as pure. And she held him like she refused to ever let him go and face the world alone again.

He dissolved in her, this girl– this woman he had not seen in fifteen years, ever since the day he had made the grand mistake.

A mistake... Is that what it was?

If it had pushed her away from him, then it had definitely been a mistake. For never in his darkest nightmares had he imagined a life without her, let alone ever hoped to experience it. There was no life without Starfire. She brought the daylight. And he had lived in shadow for so long.

As quickly as it came, the white sun set into whence it came and the five heros were once again veiled in a thin mist of blackness, broken with scattered holes of starlight and the florescent beams of streetlights. And still, she held him, and still he cried, not caring who was watching or what else was happening. He had missed her so much.

"Ahem."

The cough was cold and incapable of understanding the fireworks of emotion exploding inside of him, therefore he knew it could only have come from Raven. Out of spite, he ignored her, though he felt her presence only feet away from him.

Noting that Robin and Starfire were purposefully ignoring her, Raven narrowed her eyes and folded her arms, ready to create a tidal wave to wash over the docks and drown them both. But she relented. Instead, she felt content to wallow in her envy and glare at her two teammates, gushing over each other in public. Granted, there were no people around, but nonetheless this was occurring out in the open, where people _could_ pass by, should they want to. She exhaled sharply out of her nose in annoyance.

Then, it dawned on her.

Their missing link was Starfire. Of course. She was here. Some gift of the heavens had brought her to them and they were at long last a team again, whole again. And somehow, with the alien in her presence, Raven felt the tug of humanity pulling at her heavy heart. Starfire had always brought out the best in her. Now that she had returned, she remembered what it was like to feel human.

She took in the woman who was kneeling before her, clad in a white gown, modeled like a toga and held together with silver broaches at each shoulder. It flowed off her like froth off of a wave. She wore it like the wind itself and it seemed lighter than light and just as bright. She was older, which was to be expected, yet still looked younger than the rest of him, as if she'd only aged five years rather than fifteen. And yet, her true age could be seen in her wise eyes. Yes, Starfire had grown much since they had last met.

She coughed again, louder and more obvious, in hopes they would suddenly remember that the fate of the world was in jeopardy. Robin wouldn't let go, but after a moment, the crimson-haired angel released her embrace and looked over Robin's shoulders, her lips straight and her eyes sparkling.

"I have missed you," she said simply, looking Raven directly in the eye. She then smiled and looked down at Robin, who refused to relinquish his grip around her neck. "I have missed all of you."

Raven was suddenly aware of Beast Boy and Cyborg a few paces behind her.

"Starfire..." Cyborg muttered. "Where have you been?"

Her smile broadened, but it wasn't the same carefree smile it had been in her youth. Experience had added years to her countenance, and wisdom took its toll on her endless optimism. "Only days after I left you, I was contacted by a demon," she told them. "She called herself Chrona, the Mistress of Time."

At the mention of the name, Robin stiffened in her arms and Raven's eyebrows raised in interest.

Starfire continued. "Chrona, I have learned, was more than any other earth demon."

"She's an interdimensional spirit," Raven interrupted, knowingly. "She's infamous in all dimensions– even this one." She looked pointedly at Robin. "Years ago, in ancient human history, she was even worshiped by civilizations as a goddess who used different names. She was even one of the original Greek Titans, although she was depicted as male. But the stories everywhere remain the same. She holds the key to time itself in her palms, and has watched the earth since its very birth. Some say she is even the Creator."

"But is she?" Beast Boy asked. "Because that's just verging on sacrilegious."

Raven turned to him seriously. "No," she said, simply. "Most demons have deducted that she did not create the universe. For one thing, she has shown inadvertently that creating and maintaining life is outside her surprisingly limited range of power. But she does quite skillfully manipulate time, jumping back and forth in all its folds, twisting it, slowing it and hastening it as she pleases. Fortunately, that's all she can do. She cannot change it. However, it has been decided that she is one of the oldest demons in all history, predating any modern breed, and especially the human race. As such, her form has faded. She should probably be dead now, but because of her grand knowledge of time, she has found the key to immortality and refuses to share. Nonetheless, she is corporeal in no dimension any longer, and uses banshees as her messengers, often warning those she is fond of of their impending death so as they might avoid it, or playing with those she dislikes by fooling them with banshee riddles. The human race is a joke to her and she delights in tormenting it."

"So how old exactly is this time demon?" Cyborg asked at last.

Raven looked to Robin. "Care to answer, dear leader?" she asked. "You are famous in the dimensions for being one of her favorite humans. You must know all about her."

Robin, who had at last let go of Starfire, was standing tall and glaring at Raven. Finally, he nodded and turned to Cyborg and the others. "Let's put it this way," he said. "If humans appeared a minute before midnight on the geological clock, then she came along around 4:00 in the afternoon."

"OK," said Beast Boy. "So Starfire the middle-aged mayfly met Chrona the ancient tortoise. What did she do that made you disappear?"

Starfire laughed and it was a relief to all of them to hear it. "Dear Beast Boy, I never disappeared. I merely rose to a higher plane."

Raven gasped and Beast Boy's jaw dropped. Their fellows glanced at them briefly before reverting their gaze back to Starfire, who laughed again.

"I believe Raven and Beast Boy understand what a privilege that is. A higher plane is a dimension that exists outside of time and space. It is impossible to create a door to such a place because time does not exist there. Therefore, to build a bridge, one needs to be somewhere time has stopped completely. It is actually quite a simple task, with Chrona's aid. Fifteen years ago– Lord Grognak, has it really been so long in this world? Well, fifteen years ago, she told me that I would be needed sometime in the future to help avert a catastrophe. She said it was for the best that I learned with her how to manipulate time. She gave me a great gift and sacrificed much to grant me such a gift. No longer will she live forever. Like all demons, she will eventually die. She gave up her eternal life to save this world. And I shall forever respect her for it."

"Wait, wait, wait," Beast Boy said, shaking his head. "You're saying that Chrona gave you the gift of _time_?"

Starfire nodded with a smile. "But just as she had a price to pay, so did I. I was kept like a prisoner in that dimension, aging slower than the rest of you, but aging nonetheless for I was a living being where nothing should have lived. There were so many instances in all those years in which I longed to see you, but I could not leave my realm. Finally, I grasped the concepts well enough to aid you. And I waited for Chrona to bring me to you."

"So..." said Cyborg. "You're like... a Goddess now?"

Starfire giggled and blushed. "I would not call myself by such a name."

"Well," said Raven, sounding a bit sarcastic and perhaps only slightly bitter. "If Chrona can claim the title, I see no reason why you can't."

"She's a definite messiah," said Robin, proudly. "She came at just the right moment, just when we needed her, to save the world. A definite angel."

If possible, Starfire's blush deepened. "I do not believe that is appropriate–"

"There's no time," Raven interrupted, becoming disgusted with the way Robin and Starfire still fawned over each other. "What did she tell you about Loki."

Nodding in understanding, her face growing solemn, Starfire replied, "I know much of the demon's intentions. Much of it has to do with you," she added, looking pointedly at Raven, who looked away.

"What are you talking about, Starfire?" Robin asked in confusion. But Starfire's eyes remained on the half-demon.

"She did not tell you that Loki courted her, five years ago?" Starfire asked curiously, eyes raised.

"The insolence," Raven spat in disgust. "A demon of his stature daring to request my love. Claiming that he would have power someday, asking me to _share_ it! From a Morlin demon! Arrogant bastard. I put him in his place."

"And he put you in yours," Beast Boy noted, nodding at the scar, which only earned him a glare from Raven.

"Loki was a spineless little demon who had a nasty talent for manipulation, which was how he gained his power in the first place. Three years after I rejected him, he became Emperor of the Shorlia Dimension– by force. Shorlia is a superpower and has most of the dimensions' magical exports. He had gathered an army of brute force and the most cunning wizards and shamans, God only knows how. Bribery, blackmail and coercion no doubt. His specialties. He knocked them down. The greatest army in any dimension, and he drove it into the mud. Needless to say, prices went up on just about everything. He sent me a letter with an enchanted locket, offering me everything. I refused, of course. He may have been ruler of Shorlia, but he was still a sniveling Morlin and I wanted nothing to do with him."

"And now," Starfire said, "he won't rest until he has revenge."

"Because Raven rejected him?" Beast Boy said with a laugh. "Aw, come on, Rae rejects just about everyone!"

But Raven was grave as she shook her head. "Something went... wrong. He became furious with my refusal and apparent 'prejudice.' He became obsessed with it, writing me letters, promising glory. I never read most of them. Only when I wanted a laugh. While he was focused on me, the citizens of Shorlia, angry at being repressed by a minion demon, revolted. With him caught off guard, and most of his hired mercenaries on the side of the people, Loki was defeated. Rumor has it he hid in a cave for ten months, draining the life and powers out of anyone who dared cross his path, including some great wizards. Then, a few months ago, he burst back into the demon world with a vengeance, slaughtering everyone for revenge. Shorlia was devastated, and in many lesser dimensions, there's not a soul alive. Other dimensions collapsed in on themselves completely from his magic. Eventually, there arose three dimensions that remain untouched by his rage. A small dimension of magically adept humans and wizards called Lorethel, my own home of Azarath, and, of course, this dimension. We formed an alliance of armed forces, the Triad of Light, named after an ancient and sacred Lorethelian order. They were some of the best soldiers from all three worlds."

Robin and Beast Boy stared agape and Starfire looked on with raised eyebrows. But Cyborg was standing cold. He elbowed Beast Boy in the ribs.

"You're dead," he murmured. "I thought you knew these things about Raven."

But he shook his head. "Can't watch her all the time man," he muttered. "Spent most of my time tailing this guy over here." And he jabbed a finger at Robin.

"And the Triad failed," Starfire said, her voice solemn.

"Damn right it did," Cyborg said loudly, earning him a curious glance from Raven. He looked at her with an empty gaze. "Lieutenant Stone, serial 45062, second division, blue team." He smiled at Beast Boy's surprised look. "Hey, the bartending gig's a side bit. I figured you didn't know everything when you asked about Loki in the bar."

Beast Boy slapped himself on the forehead. "Goddamn, how the hell could I have missed this big evil villain! He was everywhere!"

"For the same reason you would have missed it if you were alive," Raven said coolly. "You just don't pay attention."

Beast Boy began to roll up his sleeve. "Why I oughtta–"

"Regale us with tales of the war, friend Cyborg," Starfire said quickly. He looked at Raven long and hard.

"Nothing to tell, really," he said. "We went, we fought, we lost. Only a handful escaped alive. I had friends in that battle. And I ran like a coward. I got the hell out of there when I saw people just falling down dead on either side of me, not even struck by a weapon. They killed us with glares, I swear to God. And I never want to go back." He shook his head, sadly.

Raven gave him a gentle smile. "You did a brave thing," she said. "Many ran and they're alive today because of it."

"So to Loki's I take it?" Robin asked. "Wherever that is."

"There is a Lorethelian that lives here in Jump City," said Cyborg quietly. "A clever wizard who helped me out of a scrape during the battle. He'll know where Loki is."

Raven nodded. "Then to the Lorethelian. He will give us the aid we need."

Robin and Starfire followed her back to the car. Cyborg began to do the same when Beast Boy's voice stopped him.

"Hey Cyborg," he said, watching as with every step Starfire seemed to glow brighter. "Riddle me this. How come after fifteen years, the girls become goddesses, and us guys are left to drown ourselves in misery?"

But Cyborg watched Raven's retreating back with pity. "Aw, BB," he said. "Look beneath the surface. We aren't the only ones who are miserable. And we aren't the worst off by far."

Beast Boy grinned up at him and winked. "Knew that," he said. "Checking to see if you did."

And with that, he skipped off over to the car to leave Cyborg puzzling after him.


	6. The Mad One

**_Author's Note:_** Alrighty then... Allow me to explain my EXTENDED absence. This chapter has been ready for some time. But I've been hella busy with school and AP US History, which is finally over (history, not school). Apologies for the wait. My life is incredibly busy. Here's something to satisify your hunger for a while.

Chapter Five: The Mad One

"_They say that Jesus and mental health are just for those who can help themselves. But what good is that when you live in Hell on Earth?"_– Barenaked Ladies, _War On Drugs_

The old one opened his eyes, his hands still hovering over the white orb. Merely moments ago, the orb was crystal clear, but now it was as oblique as alabaster, a wolf's eye an a white marble swirl. He looked straight ahead of him, his wizened features extending to his spindle like fingers whose tips touched the orb lightly. He smiled and his white eyes seemed to glow with sight, though the old one had not seen with the organs in years. His eyes were in his fingertips, and the depths of his mind.

The scaley demon folded his arms and waited, impatiently swishing his black and red tail.

"Well, get on with it! What do you see?" It's voice was whiney and egotistical, but its jaws were long and wide like a crocodile's and its teeth twice as sharp.

The old one knew of his impertinence but chose to ignore it, for he could see that the beast would pay in the end. He gave a crooked smile which made his long white whiskers twitch. Or perhaps that was the spider, which buried its way out of the old man's beard and scurried up across his cheek to the fluff on his scalp where it nestled and hid itself again.

"You will succeed," he lied fluently, his voice cracked like a cobwebbed tree hollow. "It has been foretold by Chrona herself. Though she has tried everything to prevent it."

"Like what?" asked the demon, bored now really since he had his answer. He began looking at the claw on the forefinger of his left hand. "Hey, you suppose I should get these filed? My manicurist said if they get too long, they might start to curl. But I told her I'd always wanted to look like Freddy Kruger..." Then he looked up and laughed at the blank look the old man was giving him. "Oh yeah, I forgot. You wouldn't know what Freddy Kruger looks like."

The man grunted and coughed up a mothball, which he spat onto the floor. "Indeed... Well, there is one thing to be wary of." He figured he should give the impertinent beast at least some warning.

The demon looked unimpressed as he continued to analyze his hands. "And so what. I've faced the Triad of Light for crying out loud. I can face whatever you see in that ball of yours."

"Can you face love?" the old man inquired. "As banal as it is, can you do that? Trust and loyalty? Can you amount to that?"

"As corny as that is, yeah," said the demon. "There was plenty of love and trust and loyalty in that army, and they all burned."

"But what about _her_ love?" the old man hissed like a serpent. He had caught the demon's interest.

"Her?" he said eagerly. "Her who?"

"The Dark Queen," said the old man, sounding quite dark himself.

The beast grinned and rubbed his hands together. "Raven, Raven, Raven my love! What is the dear girl up to now?"

"She has reunited with an army, the most powerful you will ever face," said the old one.

The beast smiled condescendingly. "Oh, you poor old man. How many times do I have to tell you? I've beaten a million armies before, whatever Raven has to throw at me I'm sure I can take."

"Very well, sire," said the old man, bowing, his hands clasped behind his back. But as he turned to leave, he remembered what the spirits had told him and he knew that the demon's impertinence would be his downfall.

Raven looked back at them, Starfire in the middle and Robin and Beast Boy on either side of her, bombarding her with questions about her years in a timeless dimension. But mostly, she saw Robin and Starfire making eyes at each other, even after all their years of separation, and it sickened her. But she found she couldn't blame them for it. Starfire was beautiful and Robin was bold. They were a match made in heaven.

Unbeknownst to Raven, Starfire was warily aware of Raven's regard. But she did not turn to meet her gaze. Instead, she watched Robin as he laughed and spoke of old times. She smiled to see him so happy, and she wished that she could continue to be the source of his happiness. But there was something else Chrona had told her that she had refused to share with her friends. It was something best told to the person involved in private. And Robin would not be happy to hear it.

_Or perhaps I fool myself..._ she thought, curiously. _Perhaps he will not be disappointed at all, but relieved._ Despite knowing it was wrong, Starfire's heart sank at such an idea. For to have Robin like the proposal would mean that she had taken his attentions all wrong. That he really saw her as just a friend after all.

"What's eating you?"

Raven jumped out of her glaring to look at Cyborg, who was looking at the road ahead.

"Why does something always have to be wrong with me?" she snapped in annoyance.

"Because it's the same thing that's wrong with you all the time," Cyborg replied. "You just refuse to tell us what it is."

Raven folded her arms in a child-like huff. "How could you ever understand the workings of a demon?" she mumbled in contempt.

"_Half_-demon," Cyborg corrected. "You know. Kinda like _half_-robot? We still have some humanity left in us, you and I. Otherwise, you wouldn't be trying to save the world, would you?"

"I'm saving the world," Raven began through gritted teeth, "because my worst enemy is threatening it."

"Aw, it's more to it than that," Cyborg said with a grin, glancing at her.

"Shut up and drive," Raven said, folding her arms resolutely.

Cyborg sighed, disappointed. "You used to trust me, Raven. We used to trust each other."

"A lot can change in fifteen years," said Raven, looking out the windshield.

"Tell me about it," Cyborg replied, taking her advice and watching the road. "I've been through a war and back again and not even our commanding officer knew I was there."

This caught Raven's attention and she turned to stare at him in a mixture of bafflement and offence. "The human army was not my charge, that was the responsibility of–"

"Nonetheless, you _were_ of the Trinity of Rulers," Cyborg muttered, keeping his eyes on the road.

"Exactly," Raven snapped, defensively. "I had a lot to attend to. I couldn't make note of every single soldier in every army."

"Don't worry," Cyborg said with a wink that told her he wasn't just being passive aggressive. "I forgive you."

She rolled her eyes which made him laugh.

"Hey," he said with a grin as he made a left and stopped in front of his wizard's house. "It's what friends do, isn't it?"

"What?" Raven said, unable to resist a chuckle herself.

"Forgive each other," he replied, looking over his shoulder out the back window as he parallel parked.

Frowning, Raven turned away and didn't let him see the spark of regret shine bleakly in the corner of her eye. When he turned back, satisfied with his parking, he smiled at her again, noting she was sulking. "Don't worry, kiddo," he said, quietly and solidly. "Things can only get brighter."

"Or considerably darker," Raven mumbled, thinking about the world's possible future as her robot companion stepped out of the car. But before she could go any further, she stopped and stared at the simple building in front of her.

A house, not much different from any other house she'd seen in her life, but a house nonetheless, with lawn gnomes and everything. The simplicity astounded her. When Cyborg mentioned a Lorethelian, she'd pictured a penthouse, or at least a beach house or luxurious home on the upper east side. Lorethelians had always been ones for flare and flash, friendly and in the center of it all. She had expected... she didn't know what she'd expected, lights, cameras and red carpets, but not a modest house in suburbia. What kind of man _was_ this?

_He's a Lorethelian_, Raven reminded herself sharply, _and Lorethelians are bright. He must have to keep a low profile. Which means someone's looking for him other than us._

"Yo, Rae, you coming?" Cyborg called from the door, the rest of the team already there, Beast Boy eager to ring the doorbell. She nodded and followed them up the gravel pathway, past the neatly manicured lawn and it's crazy gnomes, and past the minivan in the driveway.

A short man with a mess of curly brown hair with streaks of gray and a crooked nose opened the door a crack, calling to someone over his shoulder.

"And Sheila, don't forget to tell her about the time Josh ran up to Rabi Markowitz and chewed on his leg!" He turned back outside, chuckling to himself at some inside joke as he shook his head. He took in the crowd and saw Cyborg immediately and his half smile grew to a full out grin. He threw open the door and opened his arms in welcome.

"Victor, my _man_!" he declared. "Where've you been, buddy, haven't seen you since the apocalypse!"

"Louis, good to see you too," Cyborg said with a light chuckle himself. He glanced at Raven, who was looking inwardly horrified, one eyebrow raised in skeptical surprise and he laughed even harder. "But I hate to say, this isn't a social call. This is–"

"Oh my God, it's Raven!" cried Louis in utter disbelief. He screamed over his shoulder. "Sheila, get the camera, it's Raven! What? Aw, woman, I don't care about the pot roast, just get the camera! Josh– Josh, boy, come here, meet the woman you fought for– That's right, Karen, you too, come on, everyone get over here!"

Raven put up her hood, her face set and unamused as she tried her best to hide behind it. "I don't to photos," she said, simply.

Louis looked like he had no idea what she was talking about. "Photos– who said anything about photos, aw, no, no, Raven, we're just gonna do a quick video!"

"No," Raven said simply, her eyes invisible beneath the darkness.

"Uh, Lou, I'm afraid we don't have time," said Cyborg. "These are my friends, Robin, Starfire and Beast Boy and we–"

"Oh ho ho!" Louis cried. "Is it my lucky day or what? The famous Teen Titans, together again! Now tell me, because I forget– which one of you is dead? Oooh, that spell was flawless, I really can't tell, you all look so young and vibrant and healthy–" He suddenly pointed at Robin with a knowing grin and a daring look to his eye. "Was it you? Come on now, tell me! It was, wasn't it! I can see it in your eyes, you've been dead before!"

Robin gave a weak smile, obviously slightly offended.

"No," Raven said with a mocking smile. "But he can be if he plays his cards right."

Robin shot Raven a warning look and offered his hand to Louis. "Hi," he said, simply. "I'm Robin."

"Robin, Robin, Robin," Louis said, grinning from ear to ear and shaking his hand vigorously. "Of course, what a schmuck I am, eh? You're the _leader_, so _obvious_ now, what with the long hair and the cape and the brooding– wow, you really have the dark hero thing down pat, don't you?" He turned to the others and rubbed his hands together gleefully. "OK, OK, now it's one of you two, isn't it, oh boy oh boy– no wait, don't tell me– The redhead. What with the white and the heavenly glow– You're the dead one, right?"

Starfire smiled bashfully as Robin answered for her with a firm. "No."

Louis slapped his forehead, looking at Beast Boy. "My God, what a schlemiel! I'm such a fool, of course, of course, fooled by a stupid spell. Now you gotta tell me, green man, who cast it, huh? Was it a wizard, witch, shaman, demon, what?"

"Uh... yes?" Beast Boy answered, a little intimidated by the barrage of questions but enjoying the man's personality nonetheless. Louis threw his head back and laughed.

"Oh, you guys are a riot, a _riot_!" he declared, then turned over his shoulder again. "SHEILA! Good God, woman, where are you!"

"Keep your head on, Lou," came a woman's nasal voice from somewhere with in the house. "I can't find the camera! Don't be rude, invite them in already!"

"Oh of course, of course, what was I thinking!" Louis cried, laughing at himself. "Come in, come in, don't just stand there like doormats, come _in_!"

One by one, the Titans filed into the household and were led past the staircase and into a cozy little livingroom where a young couple were sitting on a couch and a stout middle-aged woman was pouring tea into a mug. The young man on the couch had a nose like Louis's and had his arm draped around the woman's shoulders, a blonde with blue eyes, who looked content in his embrace.

"Sheila, Josh, Karen, this is the Teen Titans!" said Louis dramatically, a smile in place waiting for a reaction that never came.

"Alright, it's the Teen Titans, Lou, we _get_ it already!" cried the stout woman, who must have been Sheila, with a roll of her eyes. But she smiled warmly at the past-their-prime super heros. "But more importantly, they're our guests. How are you, dears?"

Cyborg returned the smile with a kind nod. "We're good, Sheila, how are you?"

"Victor, have a cookie," Sheila said, warmly, offering him a whole plate of sugar cookies. "You haven't come to see us in a while now."

"Thank you Sheila," Cyborg said gratefully, politely taking one of the frosted cookies. "I've been busy with my job. But if you don't mind, I need to talk to your husband about something a little urgent..." He glanced at Raven. "Actually, make that _very_ urgent," he corrected.

Sheila nodded, understanding. "Of course, dear," she said. She looked at the blonde. "Karen, honey, why don't you come and we can talk about your wedding arrangements in the kitchen."

"Of course, Mrs Cohen," the blonde said, sweetly.

"Oh, honey, how many times do I have to tell you, call me Sheila, dear. And later on, we can talk about calling me _Mom_, eh?"

"Hey, Sheila!" Louis called after her retreating back. He put his hands on Beast Boy's shoulders as he stood behind him. "Did you know this one's _dead_?"

Sheila looked over her shoulder at him long enough to smile and nod. "That's nice, dear," she said, flatly before disappearing down the hall.

With the women's departure, Louis became exceptionally more nervous. The young man on the couch, undoubtably Josh, rose to leave but Louis called out to him.

"Josh!" he said. "Wait a minute, boy, where are your manners?"

The young man apologized, but sounded a little confused, his eyes watching his father. "I'm Josh," the boy said. "Just an accountant. Nothing interesting to tell. I'll let you guys be–"

But Louis hastily interrupted. "Y-you know, Jo-_Josh_ here, my boy, my _son_ is getting married in a few months!" he said excitedly. "To that lovely young lady you just saw, a _lawyer_, would you believe it?" Louis laughed, but there was a nervousness to it this time. "My son sure caught a good one. Pretty _and_ with a bright head on her shoulders, that's what I'm talking about–"

"Lou," said Cyborg, interrupting. "We're having this conversation with or without your son in the room."

Louis sighed and looked down. Meanwhile, his son looked awkward, standing in the doorway between the livingroom and the hallway, confused of which way his dad wanted him to go. Louis bit his lip and bade him enter.

"Sit down, son," he said. "If this is about what I think it's about, Josh has a right to hear it." He nodded at Raven. "He fought for her, you know. Fought for this reality and everything in it. And most people in this dimension don't have a clue. No veteran benefits, nada. Just me and my boy, making ends meat, with two wonderful women at our sides. So tell me, Victor, what exactly do you want to know about Loki?"

The other Titans seemed surprised at the forthright question, but Cyborg was unfazed. "Where is he hiding?" Cyborg asked. "What is he planning? How grand a scale? Do you _know_ these things, Louis?"

Louis nodded, sadly. "Well, I mean, not exactly," he corrected himself. But he sighed again and continued to nod. "But I can find out for you."

"Dad..." Josh said slowly, but Louis held up a hand to stop him.

"No, Josh," he said. "This is our duty, as Lorethelians. It is our sworn promise to protect life, all life. We are a peaceful society. And these good people need our help to complete their destiny."

"But Dad," Josh said. "Last time..."

But again, Louis hushed him. "I know, son, I know," he said. "But every time you mess with the crystals, that's always a risk."

"Uh... What happened last time?" Beast Boy asked, a little nervously.

"He–"

"It was nothing," Louis interrupted his son, quickly. "Just a few side effects, to be expected..."

"One more time, and it could kill him," Josh said, frankly.

There was a stunned silence, suddenly broken by Louis's laughter.

"Oh Joshua, always one for the dramatic!" he said. "Nah, death is highly unlikely with these crystals. I got them on sale at Conjurings-R-Us!"

"Yes," said Josh sarcastically. "And that just screams 'safe!'"

"Listen, Lou," said Cyborg, slowly. "I don't want to endanger your life. We can find our answers our own way."

"Nope," said Louis stubbornly. "I won't allow it." He looked at Josh momentarily, then back at Cyborg. "There is... _one_ way."

"Dad, no," Josh said, sternly, becoming a little defensive. But Louis grinned.

"That girl he's got..."

"Dad–"

"Well," Louis continued, despite his son's protests. "She's a Lorethelian by birth. A witch, to put it frankly. Quite a lot of talent in that one. And she's young, too, the residue from the magic shouldn't effect her so much, she's strong enough and healthy enough. An older guy like me, messing with crystals on a monthly basis– it's like Marie Curie carrying around Uranium in her pocket."

"But she was raised _here_," Josh added, angrily. "And Dad knows she hasn't done magic since college when she studied in Lorethel under safe conditions. Dad, what if something goes wrong?"

But Louis had that look in his eye, that look Cyborg recognized all too well. The look of a madman before brilliance, the look of a genius before a nervous breakdown. He was dead set on it now, running on the pure adrenalin the excitement was pouring into his system. Cyborg loved that look. It was that look that had saved his life. And it was that look that would save the world.

"Oh, nothing will go wrong, I'll be there!" Louis said, dismissing his son with a wave of his hand. "And Sheila will help. And, I'll have you know, boy, Karen's been cooking with Sheila in the kitchen. Those yams you just shoved down your throat a few minutes ago? Karen conjured them with a snap of her fingers."

Josh was aghast. "Karen said she wasn't going to _do_ magic in this dimension, the atmospheric balance is delicate enough as it is without amateurs–"

"Karen's no amateur, boy, you're the amateur," said Louis with a grin. "That's why you're the accountant and she's the lawyer. Oh, this is so exciting, just like my war days working as a defense wizard at your base, Vic! Come on kids, into the kitchen we go to fetch us a couple of witches!"

The women were more than willing to help. It seemed Josh was the only one who was wholeheartedly against the dangerous plan. He took his fiancé aside and spoke with her quietly.

"Karen, are you _sure_ you're ready for a spell of this magnitude?"

Karen, a girl of around twenty seven, three years Josh's junior, nodded a little shakily, but with a confidant smile. "Your mother's a good teacher," she told him, looking over his shoulder admirably at the older woman, who was listening to Louis's plans for the spell. She smiled at her fiancé. "Yes, Josh, I think I can handle this."

Josh sighed and turned to face the others. The Titans were listening intently to his father's description of the spell; that is, all but one, who was off in the corner, staring out a window.

"It was a dark and stormy night..." Josh said from behind the excluded Titan, making her jump a little. She turned to him and smiled dimly. "I didn't mean to startle you. But that's how all scary stories begin, don't they? So tell me. What's yours?"

"I don't have one," Raven replied, coldly. "And you didn't startle me."

"Right," said Josh. "You know Lorethelians can see through lies like glass. So tell me, what is your deal? I know you have one."

"Damn you Lorethelians and your irksome intuition," Raven muttered with a glare. "That's what always gets you into trouble. Your big noses." She scrutinized his face a moment, then smiled. "I mean, metaphorically speaking at least."

"No offense taken," said Josh simply, refusing to be put off by personal insults. But she had turned back to the black glass, staring up at the cloudy sky. He sighed and tried to follow her gaze, but he didn't know what exactly it was she was looking for in all that midnight gray. "I was fifteen years old when your team broke up," he said finally, for the only purpose of saying something. "Dad had moved us here after one of his assignments went wrong in Lorethel. He was working for the government then as some sort of spy... anyways, I've lived here in Jump City since I was twelve, and I had instantly taken a liking to your group. It... well, it made me very sad when I saw my dad reading the sports section of the newspaper that day, completely avoiding the front page news: The Fall of the Titans. I felt my heart drop into my stomach and called up my friends right away, but they'd already heard. I don't know which bothered me more– the fact that I never knew entirely what happened or that I was the last person to know."

"Probably the latter," Raven said in answer, still staring absently out into the sky. "People always hate it when they're the last to know anything. Beast Boy's a prime example of that fact."

Josh laughed. "You made a joke."

"You're a quick one," Raven muttered.

"I always did like you," Josh said with a smile. "And I'm glad I can say this to you in person... It was a pleasure to work under you."

She finally turned to look at him and shook her head, her lips straight and her eyes just the slightest bit confused. "But despite being raised in this dimension, you're a Lorethelian and therefore would be in the Lorethelian army, and I had no part in running that. That was Johan's responsibility–"

"Nonetheless," Josh interrupted. "You were part of the Trinity. So directly or indirectly, I served under you, and you were a magnificent leader. The Azarath army was the most daring, with the most cunning maneuvers and plans. And if I recall, it was you who exposed a lot of Loki's weaknesses and devised many of the battle strategies for all the armies."

"A lot of good it did," Raven muttered, thinking of someone else who had served in the human army and said nearly the same thing Josh just did. "He's still at large and more than seventy-five percent of each our armies have been annihilated. And now, he's ready to eradicate all realities with one blow. And we don't even know how."

"But you will," said Josh, looking over proudly at his father who had that crazy excited gleam to his eye.

Raven smiled as she followed his gaze. "You are proud of your father, aren't you?"

"Would I be so worried about losing him if I wasn't?" he muttered, staring fondly after him. "Of course I'm proud of my father. He's a brilliant wizard, but sometimes he's a little crazy. He doesn't know when something can be very wrong for him. All in the name of Lorethel. A patriot to the end."

Raven tilted her head to the side, deciding she liked the man. "It's good to know that there are still people as loyal as you and your father out there in the world."

But he looked back at her with a toothy, knowing grin. "Come on, Raven! Your group is the epitome of loyalty."

She looked at them now, in all their ancient glory. Starfire looked gorgeous and just as righteous as she ever was, beaming with joy because she was back with the people she loved most in the world. Raven could relate. She would never admit the happiness she felt deep in her heart just to be around her old friends. Through everything, Starfire's arrival to the scene proved to her that their team did have a chance. With an angel on their side, they couldn't fail. Starfire was the epitome of hope and faith. The ultimate cynic, Raven wouldn't believe anyone else but her when Starfire said that everything would turn out OK in the end. And she felt so sorry for ever disappointing her.

She would never forget bewildered look of heartbreak in Starfire's eyes the moment she saw what Raven was doing that night; what she was going to do. Because somehow, Raven felt Starfire knew the moment she saw her on that rooftop that she was going to murder their friend before even Raven herself knew it. As a matter of fact, Raven was the last to know that she had done anything at all. Everything had all happened so fast, and she hadn't been thinking clearly, or at all. She had been drunk on power and fury. And it had cost her dearly. Since, Raven had never had a sip of alcohol or anything that could alter her senses. Her daily tea intake was even modified to be a specific, strictly caffeine-free, herbal blend.

But she shook her head to clear it and moved her eyes over to Cyborg, the colossal half-robot who was chatting amicably with the small Lorethelian at the kitchen table and grinning with a fire in his eyes. She shook her head when she thought of the trust she betrayed in him. All the things she had told him, the things she had always confided in him and only in him, gone in an instant of negligence. She could have controlled herself. But she had been naive and foolish... And there had been plenty of other of factors at work she should have anticipated. Nonetheless, she had always reassured Cyborg of her affection for the team, of her deep loyalty to everyone who belonged to it. She had told Cyborg her darkest secrets, her deepest fears, her hidden truths... and now, even to her, they all seemed like lies dipped in a licorice coating– black and way too sappy. She wondered if she would ever regain the trust she must have lost in him...

Finding it too painful to dwell for long on that particular betrayal, she moved on to the man with the long black hair, the black hair she would have to _insist _he trimmed after this was all over...

_What?_ she thought to herself, astounded. _Do I really intend on sticking around after Loki is finally defeated?_

But as she reflected on it, she knew the answer was no. Beast Boy would be long gone by then, his 'unfinished business' complete, and Starfire would have to return to her timeless dimension to inherit Chrona's legacy. Cyborg, she knew, wouldn't stay for long, doubtlessly having other more pressing matters. And she would be left with him. Robin. Nightwing. Whatever he called himself. And there was absolutely no point in that.

She loved Robin. After all these years, she found that it had passed the test of time. But after years of spells and meditation rituals with Lorethelian wizards and shamen, she had learned to keep in check even her most powerful emotions. It had come with great sacrifice on her part, giving up even part of her human half to become demon enough to handle such responsibilities. But she had done it. And she hadn't since saw herself as truly human. And she hadn't since seen Robin as any more than a demon. Which, perhaps, made them the match made in hell. She felt incredibly sorry for the pressure she had put on him, and the pain she had caused him by killing not one, but two of his best friends. For it was as he had said, she had died that day along with Beast Boy and she would never be the same again. Nonetheless, she hated him for everything, and she would never forgive him for the pain _he'd _caused _her_, the suffering, and even the love he invoked in her. She would never be able to truly and honestly love him again. But perhaps to love someone truly, you needed to hate them a little. Or else, you'd die of boredom.

She smiled over at Beast Boy, who looked as lively as ever; it was no wonder Louis couldn't tell he was dead. But when one was burdened with that dark knowledge, he seemed almost transparent, like a ghost should be, and that put a strain on her heart. Beast Boy. Of all the crimes she had committed in her life, that was the one she regretted the most. Even more than what she'd done to Robin. He was her grandest mistake. And that was probably the forgiveness she deserved the least. She would never forgive herself. And one can't be forgiven until they forgive themselves.

And we are always hardest on ourselves...

She looked over at Josh, who was watching her with arms folded, his expression blank, doubtlessly somehow reading her mind with all that mysterious Lorethelian power. She scowled at him and he chuckled.

"I swear, Raven," he said. "You're the only living thing I've ever met that has so much negative energy surrounding it."

Raven was about to say that she didn't think her energy was negative at all when Louis spoke up.

"Alright you two over there, Karen, let's get this show on the road!" he called with a wild grin.

Josh took a deep breath, bit his lip, and exhaled, no doubt preparing for the worst.


	7. The Forgotten Soldier

**_Author's Note:_** Again, sorry for the delay. Exams. Internet down. Etc. Hope you enjoy this next chapter.

Chapter Six: The Forgotten Soldier_"How do you leave the past behind when it keeps finding ways to get to your heart? It reaches way down deep and tears you inside out 'til you're torn apart."–_ Company, RENT!

_"On behalf of humanity I will fight for your sanity. How profound such profanity can be."– Barenaked Ladies, 'War On Drugs'_– Barenaked Ladies, '_War On Drugs'_

* * *

It seemed like a simple enough procedure for those who weren'tused to magic. But the Titans, all of whom by now had experienced magic in some sense, knew better. The atmosphere of their dimension was filled with unstable magical particles that, when stimulated, could implode and cause disturbances in the time continuum. Like the moon's gravitational pull mysteriously controls the waves, these small implosions altered many things in this dimension, both natural and unnatural phenomena. It could do anything from cause a local power outage to creating a grand tsunami to disintegrating anyone within a five mile radius. Magic had to be dealt with carefully in this dimension, so as not to disturb the natural magic particles in the air and avoid any catastrophes.

Unfortunately, like dealing with a radioactive substance, dealing with magic in this dimension also released plenty of negative side effects which, as Josh duly pointed out, had begun to take an incredible toll on Louis. You wouldn't notice it if you didn't know what to look for, but his fingers were more brittle than they should be and a slight shake was present when he stood for too long. Though gray hair was far from premature for him, he seemed to have more of it than his wife who seemed to be about the same age. He hid it well, but Josh was probably right. One more spell of this magnitude could kill him.

Karen stood in the center of a summoning circle, asking the blessing of whatever gods that governed magic, to have, for a brief period, the gift of Sight, to see past, present, and future events concerning the party involved– in this case Loki. Louis walked ceremoniously around the edge of the circle, chanting in a dead Lorethelian language and throwing dust into the center of the circle.

"Koomba kayush, koomba kayush, lorak'lahan, borahi borahi! Koomba kayush, koomba kayush, lorak'lahan, borahi borahi!"

Starfire was startled by a few of the words. "I do not recognize the dialect," she muttered, "but we speak a variation of this language in my home. How might it have reached this people?"

"What's he saying?" Robin whispered for curiosity's sake. But Starfire was still amazed that her mother tongue was being spoken so fluently by a human.

"Quiet," Raven hissed, hearing Robin's voice. "One word could upset the whole balance!"

Robin silenced himself because behind his annoyance, he knew that she was right.

In an instant, Karen fell to her knees, her eyes pure white and her mouth wide open, a black shadow pouring out of it.

"Karen!" Josh screamed in fear. His father had to grab him to keep him from entering the circle.

"Josh!" he said, urgently. "If you enter now, you could kill her and everyone else in this room."

Robin frowned, wondering but dare not voicing the question of what was wrong. Had it been his brief exchange with Starfire that had caused it? He looked over at the bright Tameranian only to be grandly disappointed by her darkness. She was staring wide-eyed, almost as fearful as Josh. She quivered and nearly fainted, but Robin caught her as he saw her knees give way.

"Starfire!" he said. She shook her head and blinked, her mouth partly open.

"No..." she whispered. "She's so young..."

A cyclone seemed to start to stir up in the chamber and Cyborg had to scream to get his point across. "Lou, what's going on!"

"Something's upset the magical balance!" Louis yelled back from across the room, trying desperately to keep his son from running stubbornly to his fiancé.

"Louis!" Sheila shrieked nervously. "She wasn't ready, we should never have–"

"Stop it, Dad, stop it now! Make her stop, please!" Josh was nearly in tears, fighting his father's surprisingly strong grip. His knees, too, give way beneath him as he fell to the ground followed swiftly by his father who had positioned himself behind him, his arms still around Josh's forearms and chest. Josh's eyes never left the blonde in the middle, who looked like a woman possessed.

"No!" Louis yelled in reply. "We can't!"

"Dad, Karen's life is more important than any duty you feel you have to fulfill!" Josh screamed at his father hysterically. "Let her go, please, God, just leave her alone!"

"It's not that," Louis told him, his eyes, too, on Karen. "It's that we _can't_. If we pull the plug now, she will definitely die. The magic needs to leave her body slowly, or else she has no chance of recovering."

"Then _do_ something!" Josh cried, desperation in his voice. "Make it leave slowly, just make it _go_! Do a spell or– or–"

"Josh, even with your minuscule knowledge of magic, you _know_ I can't do that," said Louis, shaking his head.

Josh looked on with helpless eyes, a soul lost in the storm of a woman's heart. He wouldn't let her go without a fight.

All of a sudden, the boy leapt up and made a mad dash to the circle.

"Josh!" Louis screamed.

"JOSH!" The Titans and his mother echoed, but it was too late.

"I have a really bad feeling about this..." Beast Boy muttered, shaking his head in terror.

But the moment he broke the circle, the storm ceased, however he didn't seem to notice the change as he ran to his beloved, now in a heap in the middle of the circle.

Slowly, Louis rose to his feet, looking murderous. "Oh Josh," he said, quietly. "You fool."

Sheila looked like she was going to have a seizure at any moment. "Oh my God... is she...?"

Josh was sobbing as he held her head in his lap and shook his head, repeating "No, no, no..."

"What just happened here?" Beast Boy asked his colleagues, who were too deep in fear to know. But he merely put his hands on his hips.

"Oh come on, guys," he said in offence. "You act like dying's a bad thing."

Slowly, all four heads of his friends turned to face him with an utterly perplexed look on their faces, but only for a moment as they turned back to the situation at hand.

All of a sudden, Karen opened her eyes. Josh nearly stood up in shock. But he settled instead for a horrified gasp.

"Oh Karen..." he whispered. "I'm so... so sorry..."

"I... I..." Her lips barely moved, but it must have been her voice. "I can't... where did... where did the light go?"

Carefully, tenderly, Josh stroked her hair and smiled through the tears, knowing that she would be able to feel his smile more powerfully than the tears falling on her face. "Sh," he said. "It's all OK now, Karen, I'm here... I'll always be here."

She reached up a delicate hand into the air and grasped at nothing a moment, then moved it towards the sound of his voice until she found his cheek. She felt his features with her fingertips and smiled warmly.

"Josh..." she said, almost wistfully. "You will do great things."

At this, Josh began to cry again, full force. He looked at his father. "Goddamn it, Dad, she was going to be a judge one day! We were going to go sailing in Catalina, we were going to go skiing in Canada, we were going to..."

"You can still do those things," said his father calmly.

"No!" Josh snapped aggressively through his misery. "No, Dad, we _can't_. Because she'll never see that sunset from our boat on the pacific. She'll never see the snow falling out the window of a mountain lodge. She'll never... she'll never _see_ Dad! I never wanted this. I never asked for this. She didn't want this! Why did you have to drag her into this, Dad, for your _stupid_ causes, these _stupid_ things you have to do..."

It was then that Raven realized the magnitude of Karen's condition. She had become a very rare case indeed.

Meanwhile, Josh continued, now looking down at his fiancé who was staring at him with white eyes. "Oh God, Dad... she was so wonderful, just the way she was, she was..."

"She _is_," his father corrected. "She's still there, Josh."

But Josh was looking down and shaking his head. "No," he said. "She was _mine_. And now... she doesn't belong to me anymore. She's been infected and she's lost to me now. Dad, I never wanted to marry a Seer..."

"Josh..." the voice was without substance, yet omnipresent, like the wind. "Josh, Josh..."

Sheila moved over to the nervous Titans. Her eyes were sad as she looked down and whispered that perhaps it was time for them to leave.

Understanding without another word, the Titans moved towards the doors immediately and were about to exit, when the afflicted girl with white eyes shot up and stared right through them, without seeing.

"Wait!" she said, her hair seeming to blow ominously with a nonexistent wind. "There is much you must know."

In an instant, Louis was kneeling at her side with an urgent look in his eyes. "Karen... You've seen it, then? What we've been looking for?"

"Dad!" Josh snarled at his father's insensitivity, pushing him away.

"Well?" Louis pressed, ignoring his son.

But the young woman was staring straight at the five Titans. "There is one more that must be broken. One more soldier to fight the final battle. Locked in stone and hidden in hurt she waits to be awakened. You..." She pointed at Cyborg, who looked a little unnerved. "You are the balance," she said with an odd smile. She turned her eery eyes to Beast Boy. "You, friend, are the light." She nodded at Starfire. "And she is the martyr." She turned her head a few degrees to face Raven and Robin, who had by chance forgotten their distaste for each other in all the chaos for an instant and were standing very near each other as if for safety. Karen's strange smile broadened into a frightening grin. "And you... You are the _key_."

Raven and Robin looked to each other, not sure which one the Seer was indicating. But they were too unsettled to ask.

Beast Boy stepped forward, however, tentatively, his face awash in an odd hopeful– but painful– excitement. "And this last soldier?" he inquired. "What of... what about her?"

"She is your link," said Karen, "to the King. Each of you are vital to this world's victory and no one can be spared. Without one, the operation will fall. Find the last one and she will lead you to your goal."

"What about Loki?" Cyborg asked from behind Beast Boy.

"He is summoning Ragnorak," said the woman simply. But Robin was shaking his head.

"She's confused," he said. "The Norse God who shares Loki's name is supposed to summon Ragnorak; the fury of the Gods and the end of the world, but..."

"And what do you think _our_ Loki's doing?" Raven replied with the twitch of a smile.

"We know that," Cyborg said, dismissing the statement. "But how."

"Exactly how it has been written," said Karen, vaguely. All of a sudden, she seemed to waver on her arm, which was supporting her and Josh caught her and laid her head back down on his lap.

"She's exhausted..." he said, looking down at her. He looked up at the Titans with weary brown eyes himself. "Go. Please, I'm sorry we couldn't be of more help to you, but just go... She needs rest."

"She needs–" Louis began, reaching out a hand to help Josh help her up.

"No, Dad," Josh snapped, doing just fine helping the girl up himself. "She _needs_ me."

As the Titans walked back to their car they realized they were no where closer to saving the world than they had been when they'd came, and they had obviously ruined a family. Not even Starfire seemed optimistic at that point. In fact, she hadn't said a word since Karen had come around."

She was holding onto Robin's arm as if it would keep her from falling. He looked at her, concerned, and pulled her into his embrace as they stood outside the car. She still clung to his left arm as he embraced her with his right.

"Sh," he whispered into her hair. "It's over now, it's OK."

"No..." Starfire muttered at last. "It's not over. Not at all. That girl... the torment she will experience. I saw it all. With my link to time, I felt the manipulation of it and I looked in through a window. What will happen to her is so cruel, and I can not help feeling I am the cause."

"Well, it was Louis who wanted to..." Robin muttered, trying to assuage her fears, but she shook her head and looked up at him with tear-filled eyes.

"No..." she whispered. "Perhaps because I am affiliated with time and Chrona, I upset the balance in the spell, with my energy, and overwhelmed her..."

"Oh Starfire," Robin said, shaking his head with a smile and thinking about how insignificant his own guilt was compared to hers. "Believe me. You didn't do anything wrong."

"But I will," she whispered into his chest so he couldn't hear. He pulled away from her and smiled and climbed into the back seat, waiting for her to follow.

She stared on after him, and continued in her head. _I will do something that will feel so horrible and unjust and it will hurt you more than I ever intended to hurt you. And all for this greater good..._

"What happened to her... exactly?" Beast Boy asked as they sat in the car, once more with no where to go. There was silence as they all looked at Raven, who was staring out the windshield as if there was something to see in the black abyss before them. Finally, she spoke.

"She has been turned into a Seer by an overflow of precognitive energy. Blinded by the future, the nerves in the back of her eyes were damaged and her irises and pupils were magically erased. Now, it is all she sees. The pressure of living in two worlds, the present and the past and future, simultaneously might drive her mad. Past, present and future no longer has any real meaning to her now. She's in a permanent limbo until something kills her."

"You mean until she dies..." Beast Boy corrected.

"I _mean_ until something or some_one_ kills her," Raven repeated. "Eventually, her body will begin to rot and decay but her soul will remain. She won't die unless someone actually dismembers her or damages her vessel enough that she can't inhabit it anymore. And even then, no one knows if a Seer's spirit is ever at rest. And as of now, our best wizards haven't been able to find a cure for the Seer's Curse."

"I've seen it..." Starfire muttered. "I've seen it all. That poor woman..."

"Yes," said Raven. "But no more poor than us."

They all stared at her insensitivity. But she continued. "Come on, guys, let's face it. We've all been thinking it. We came here for answers, we even sacrificed a woman's free life and what do we have to show for it? Nothing. Nothing at all. What do they expect us to–"

"Terra..." Beast Boy interrupted, his eyes unfocused. The name was so random, Raven stopped her frustrated speech and looked at him.

"What?" she asked.

He blinked and shook his head. "Oh, did I say something? You started talking, my mind kind of wandered..."

"... to Terra?" Raven said with raised eyebrows.

"Well, who else?" Beast Boy replied. "Don't act so surprised, Rae, it hasn't been fifteen years since we've heard her mentioned before. And I swear, every time she comes up the ground rumbles. And man, you guys, I sure as hell felt an _earth_ quake in that house."

The other Titans looked at each other skeptically. Beast Boy looked at them all in disbelief. "Oh come on!" he said. "Tell me you guys _got_ that! It was so damn obvious! 'Locked in stone' and all that jazz? Who else do we know is locked in stone?"

"A million criminals we shut up serving a life sentence in Jump City Federal Prison?" Cyborg offered. Beast Boy glared at him as Robin slapped his forehead.

"Oh my God!" he cried. "I was so stuck on the balance, light, martyr and key bit! I heard her say it, but it never registered... He's right! Terra's our last piece!"

"But I thought Starfire was the last piece?" said Cyborg, pointing at the redhead in confusion.

"Though it pains me to admit it," Raven said, watching Beast Boy very closely. "I think Beast Boy has a point."

"Thank you!" Beast Boy said in appreciation.

"So we will go to her...?" Starfire said slowly. "To our old friend? Assuming that she is still alive after all these years?"

"Star has a point too," Raven acknowledged. "Any normal person would never have survived that. Can we be sure that–"

"Terra's alive," Beast Boy said resolutely.

Raven licked her lips and continued, slowly. "O...K... Assuming that's true, how do we know we can trust her again? Do you think that just because she did something right for once, she'll suddenly be–"

"No!" Beast Boy snapped, shaking his head. "Don't say that, Raven! Yes. We can trust her. We have to. You heard what Karen said. We're all imperative to this mission's success, including Terra. That means that she _is_ alive and that we _have_ to trust her because fate says that she comes through in the end."

"But what if the fact that she's not alive is how she comes through..." Cyborg said, slowly, knowing he was treading on thin ice but also knowing it must be said.

"That won't be the case," Beast Boy growled.

Raven raised a cold, skeptical eyebrow. "Whatever happened to 'death's not so bad!'?"

But Beast Boy turned to glare at her. "If you want me to be honest, I wish Terra _was_ dead. It would have been better than being stuck in a stone statue for all these years. But to wake her up just to have her die... That's sad, Rae. Fifteen years of her life gone to the earth and now the earth wants her back? Death's only OK if you truly lived. And she never did."

There was an odd silence. Finally, Cyborg needlessly stretched his metallic fingers. "Okey dokey then, off to the underground I take it?"


	8. You Say Jump

**_Author's Note:_ **Hi, me again. I know, I always have something to say, right? Well I'm sorry for the lack of updates. School's over, work has begun. To my credit, the chapter succeeding this is a long one. And this should be done in ten chapters, eleven tops. And then, I'm focussing on another multi-part story called (temporarily) "Forgotten But Not Gone." A Robin fic mostly, featuring Cyborg and Raven as prominent co-stars... Yes, I know, a shameless plug, but hey, keep an eye out for it. Oh, and some advice for this chapter: don't jump to conclusions.

* * *

Chapter 7: You Say Jump

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

**Name:** Tara "Terra" Markov

**Activities:** Traveling. Wreaking havoc. Etc.

**Best School Memory:** There's too much too forget, but too little I want to remember.

**Favorite Band:** Blink 182, Yellow Cab

**What You'll Miss Most:** Well... There was Beast Boy...

**Often Caught Saying:** "Rocking!"

**Favorite Quote: **"A friend is the person who knows all about you, and still likes you." –Elbert Hubbard

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

They reached the old cave in a minute seeing as by chance Louis's house had been near the old battle ground. Beast Boy was now resolutely not speaking to Raven who in turn refused to fraternize with Robin and the telekinetic found that the only company she could stand at that point in time was Cyborg and Starfire. But seeing as Robin was always at Starfire's side, she found it difficult to speak at all with the Tamaranian and found herself next to Cyborg, who was leading the way down the old, crumbling tunnel to where their old friend stood, frozen in time.

"Do you really mean what you said, back there?" Raven asked him as they strode on down the dark tunnel. "In the car... about... forgiveness?"

Cyborg smiled at her. "Yeah," he said. "I did. I do, in fact."

She returned the smile, grateful for the friendship she still knew she didn't deserve. You could always count on Cyborg to give you exactly what you needed, regardless of whether you _deserved_ it or not. But she sighed.

"It seems some people are less inclined to forgive than others," she said.

"Well then," said Cyborg. "Are others as inclined to forgive some people as others think they are?"

"_Others_," Raven snapped, annoyed at his wordplay, "would be inclined to forgive as soon as some people come to their senses."

Cyborg looked over his shoulder at Robin, who was quietly conversing with Starfire. "Well, some people might not come to their senses anytime soon. So perhaps others should take the initiative."

But Raven folded her arms, resolutely. "Sometimes there are more important things to sort out first."

Cyborg sighed, but accepted her words with a nod. "Yeah," he said. "Because, God knows, love is the least important thing in the world."

Meanwhile, Robin continued to worry about Starfire. "Are you sure you're up to this?"

"Robin, I am fine," Starfire repeated for the thirty-second time that hour. "Please, I was upset by Karen's affliction, but I am fine and eager to see our old friend again."

"But you almost fainted–"

"A side effect of my new gift," Starfire said with a weak smile, pointing to her head. "Her future overwhelmed me."

"So you see... glimpses?" Robin asked.

"Sporadically," Starfire said with a nod. "Brief moments of feeling. It's not so much that I see the future, Robin than it is that I _feel_ it. It is difficult to explain."

"I bet," Robin said with a nod and that charming smile he hadn't worn in years.

Though it warmed her, his expression frightened Starfire at the same time. Robin could be their salvation, or he could be their destruction. It all rested on him. She looked away from him and he noticed her unhappiness.

"What's wrong, Star?" he asked her.

"I wish that you would end this foolish feud with Raven," she said in a whisper. She looked up at Robin with pleading eyes. "After all, we are not a true team again until we can all speak to each other without bitterness and sarcasm."

Robin sighed, unhappy with the subject. "Starfire, Raven and I... well, there's more to it than you know."

"And while I am sure that is true," Starfire replied, "I still do not understand how anything could stand in the way of our mission. We must all work together if we are to perform at our best and that means that we must all get along."

"And while I'm sure _that's _true," Robin returned, "I... I just can't deal with her right now." He sighed and shook his head. "Starfire... I was there when she... I mean, he shouldn't have stayed up there in the first place. He disobeyed a direct order. I told him she wasn't herself, that she was dangerous and to leave with you guys, but he was being stupid and stubborn. I saw her lift him up into the air and... But you know what, I've played that scene over in my head so many times, it doesn't bother me all that much anymore. I've built this ice block around that part of my memory to look on it with cold indifference."

"Then why do you hate her so?" Starfire asked, her voice full of questioning hurt. It infuriated Robin.

"And why do you _not_?" Robin snapped. "Would you _think_ Star? God knows, you didn't have Beast Boy's last look of baffled horror haunting your mind for fifteen years, but you lost him as I did. You lost all of us, and because of her–"

"I lost everything because of you!" Starfire exploded at last with an angry whisper. Robin was shocked as Starfire continued, calming down, tears in her green eyes. "Robin, I wanted so much to believe that you would show mercy on a friend in need. Because that is what Raven was. You have said it yourself, she was not herself that night. And still, you treated her like a common criminal. Robin, I left because at last my hope for our future had been shattered. I did not leave because I had lost Beast Boy. I left because I had lost you."

Robin was stunned, but this revelation only made his anger at Raven grow. If she hadn't been up there, if she hadn't exploded the way she had, he wouldn't have had to make those harsh decisions. And Starfire wouldn't think he was a monster. But he quelled his anger for the moment and tried to answer Starfire in calm terms. "Starfire, I... I'm sorry."

But Starfire was shaking her head. "No, Robin," she said. "You do not need to apologize to me." She looked to Raven down the tunnel pathway.

"I love how you're trying to see both sides of the story here," Robin said, obviously irritated. "Might I remind you that _I didn't kill anyone_?"

"Beast Boy has forgiven her," Starfire said. "I do not understand why you cannot."

"That's just it," Robin said with a sigh. "I used to think... that I hated her on BB's behalf, but when he came back, it was like a slap in the face."

"So why do you hate her?" Starfire asked. "You keep avoiding the question."

Robin opened his mouth to reply when he realized he had nothing to say. "I don't know," he said instead. If everyone else could forgive and forget after fifteen years, why was he unable to? Moreover, why was she?

"We're here," Beast Boy said.

She was as majestic as ever, frozen in time by the earth. They all stopped, afraid to approach. She awed them in her stone stupor, catatonic and cryptic, baring a warning to all of her abilities. They wondered a moment how in the world they were expect to raise her, this silent traitor, this grave corpse.

It was none other than Beast Boy who took the first steps towards her, reverently and slowly. He kneeled down at her feet like a pauper before a king, forgetting in a moment her trespasses, forgiven with her sacrifice. He read her plaque and swallowed hard.

Behind him, Raven found a new sympathy for their fallen friend. For a long time, she had despised her and her treachery. But now, a betrayer herself, she bowed her head in remorse. She'd never given Terra the time of day. And now, she was a prestigious demon in her world, with a good array of magic under her belt and where was Terra? Frozen in her earth coffin.

Then, all of a sudden, it occurred to her.

"Magic..." she muttered, a revelation hitting her. She called out to her friend. "Beast Boy, step back! I have an idea."

Unquestioningly, Beast Boy obeyed, walking backwards to join his friends, his eyes never leaving the Terra statue.

Raven closed her eyes and concentrated, using her years of experience for something. Tenderly, she reached out a mental probe to the statue and found that there was, indeed, still life there. She searched the geography of Terra's brain, not delving beneath the surface so as to invade her privacy. But finally, she found her power center and she had to tap into that in order to achieve her goal.

Slowly, Raven raised her hands, which were glowing yellow. Beast Boy gasped and stared at her.

"Raven, you look like..."

But the demon was ignoring him as her eyes glowed yellow and she focused on the rock statue in front of her. Using her borrowed powers, she focused her energy into the rock, flowing into every gap between protons and electrons, avoiding wedging herself between nuclei. Eventually, she was as much the rock as the atoms that made it. And she could control it. She kept her tight focus so no atoms would fly anywhere, also keeping in mind any magical radiation that might occur as a side effect of the spell. It was hard work– but it was working.

Slowly and ever so precisely, cracks began to form in the rock, starting at Terra's head, proceeding to her hair, her shoulders, her arms, her finger tips... Soon the entire statue was cracking. And when there was nothing left to crack, it merely crumbled.

Immediately the girl inside collapsed to the ground, pale and shaking. She was on her hands and knees unsteadily, her hair draped over her head, which was drooped down.

Beast Boy walked up to her and put a hand tenderly on her shoulder.

"... Terra?" he asked, slowly.

She looked up with bleary blue eyes, shook her head, jumped to her feet and ran.

It didn't take long for the Titans to notice that she was swiftly followed by a green panther who was bounding after her down to the mouth of the cave. And they were left with nothing but the silence and tumbled rocks.

He ran for a while in the dark, lacking Cyborg's trusty flashlight to guide him. He wondered how Terra, disoriented as she must be, could find her way blindly through the tunnel. A couple times he found himself tripping on stones or cutting his paws on jagged rocks, but he didn't care. All he cared about was finding her.

And he did.

She was sitting at the mouth of the cave, hugging her knees and staring wide-eyed at the stars above. She kept rubbing them a few times, almost as if she didn't believe it. Near the edge of the world, the sky was turning a velvet shade of violet as the first rays of dawn crept over the horizon.

He took her in then, now in his normal form. She was so small and scrawny, just as he remembered her. She was the same age as any of them, yet younger than all of them. Though Beast Boy too retained his childhood form, Terra was different. He had been around for the past fifteen years, learning and living through a deadman's eyes. Generally speaking, he didn't normally have any form at all, but for all intent and purposes, his old body had been one that was sure to comfort the friends he needed to help.

But Terra was different.

She was born in the same year he had been born and yet she was still fifteen years younger than him. It was like Rip Van Winkle in reverse. And there she was, sitting all alone on the edge of the rock outside the cave, looking up at the twinkling stars, slowly fading with the coming dawn.

She rubbed her eyes again.

"Everything's so... bright..." she murmured, disproving Beast Boy's original disbelief theory. "Even in this light, my eyes feel... Like I shut them tight and haven't opened them in..."

"Fifteen years?" Beast Boy offered.

She looked over her shoulder at him but said nothing.

"You're shivering–" he noted, trying to get closer to put his arm around her, to warm her. But she pulled away from him and he stopped.

"Being trapped in rock can make you a little shakey, you know?" she said with a small laugh. Her hair was dusty and gray, like it was laced with cobwebs. Her clothes looked like she'd washed them in cement. But she was alive.

Beast Boy sat down next to her. "You're back," he said, shakily, finding it hard to believe himself. He laughed, but the emotion felt strange on his lips. "You don't know how much I missed you."

"I might have been dead," she whispered, almost to herself. "I might have been. Hell, I don't even know. It's like I was there only yesterday and then nothing. Not even a dream or a nightmare even, just black. And it was soft. And warm. And there was nothing and I didn't think to care. I didn't know how to care. Nothing mattered. I lost who I was, who I had been... I might have been dead."

"But you weren't," said Beast Boy. "I know that for a fact."

"How?" she asked, tears in her eyes. "How do you know you didn't bring something back that you shouldn't have?"

"First of all," said Beast Boy, "probably the biggest change since you've been gone is... I died. I am dead. So I know what the word means and what it entails. And you, you weren't dead. I would have known. And second of all, we need you. You're back for a reason."

But she was still stuck on the first thing. "You're... you're dead? You can't be, I'm... you're here and I'm talking to... Am I in Hell?"

"Hell?" Beast Boy cried, offended. "Terra, what the hell would I be doing in, well, _Hell_?"

"I don't know," Terra muttered, resting her chin on her knees. "But I know you'd be in my Hell."

This hurt him probably more than she had intended, but he swallowed it with a grain of salt. "Why?" he said instead.

She looked up at him, then looked away promptly. "I hurt you. Betrayed you. Is there any worse a sin? I deserve Hell. And you'd be there to remind me of what I did every damn day."

"So... you feel remorse?" Beast Boy said.

Terra sighed. "I thought... You can't imagine what I thought. I didn't know... I was afraid. Of you. Slade... I don't know what it was. Maybe it was the whole father figure thing. He gave me security. And I was so scared that I... that I might care about something and I'd lose it. I was so scared I'd lose you that I did. And I tried to tell myself it was a lie, that I lost you long ago and that it didn't matter, I didn't care, and then you said..."

"What did I say?" Beast Boy prompted when she didn't continue. There was a flicker of a smile in her eye but it left as quickly as it had come.

"You said I still had a choice..." she said. "We always have a choice."

This healed any scar that her previous 'Beast Boy means Hell' remark had caused. He took her in his arms and she rested her head on his shoulder. He soothed her with unsaid words and gentle hands as he stroked her hair.

"But it's OK now."

"I betrayed you..." she whispered. "I don't deserve you. I never did. They won't take me back."

"Hey," said Beast Boy with a chuckle. "Why do you think we cracked that stone shell for, to yell at you? C'mon... there are worse things then betrayal."

"Judas and the seventh level of Hell aren't bad enough?" Terra mumbled into his shoulder.

"Nah, that's bad, don't get me wrong," said Beast Boy. "But what's worse is doing it and meaning it. And not regretting. Believe me, we've had our fair share of betrayal. But things always turn out OK in the end."

"They'll never..."

"Listen," he said, rolling his eyes. "You remember Raven? All 'I would never hurt you'– which is true, mind you– but she did end up throwing me to my death off of Titans' Tower."

Terra pulled away from him, looking aghast, but Beast Boy was grinning.

"You see?" he said. "Worse things. She wasn't herself. She went a little crazy. Kinda a long story not even I know the beginning to. But if there's one thing she wishes she could take back, it's that. And I get that. Besides, dying was the best thing that's ever happened to me."

"I swear to God," said Terra, shaking her head. "You are..."

"Wonderful?" Beast Boy finished for her with a grin. "Outstandingly brilliant? Stunningly handsome?" He shrugged. "I know."

All of a sudden the earth trembled and Beast Boy looked at Terra curiously, who merely shook her head.

"Not me, I swear it," she said.

There was a cackle and the two old Titans jumped to their feet and looked, utterly shocked, at what they saw.

"Terra. I've been wondering when they'd wake you up."

Inside the cave, the Titans felt the rumble and heard rocks crashing.

"We'd better get out," Robin said, looking around, "or this thing'll collapse around us."

"Point taken," Cyborg said with a nod.

But when they reached the mouth of the cave they didn't find what they thought they would.

A red vortex swirled before Beast Boy and Terra, who were staring agape at the gap in reality.

"Loki!" Raven cried, her eyes narrowing in fury as Cyborg's widened in fearful recognition.

Hovering on his own stone stood Loki, a Morlin demon with the head of a crocodile and the general body of a lizard walking on two legs. And he was only four feet tall.

"Um... Nasty little beasty you got there, Raven," said Beast Boy with a skeptical raise of the eyebrow.

"Don't underestimate him," Raven snarled. "He's got some sort of Napoleon Complex."

"Do you want another gash to balance out your face?" said Loki with a sneer. But he quickly relaxed. "I've come for the girl, that's all."

Beast Boy stepped in front of Terra, who looked mortified.

"You can't have her," he said, firmly. Terra looked at him with wide eyes.

Raven stepped forward next to Beast Boy. "You heard the ghost. Now get the hell out of here."

"What's the matter, Raven, afraid I'll start a real party?" said the demon with a cock of his eye ridge.

"Whatever you're planning we'll stop it," sneered Raven.

"No way to stop what's already been predetermined," said Loki with a confident smile. "It's called Ragnarok. Ever heard of it?"

"Get _out_ of here!" Raven screamed and a burst of black energy shot out of her hands at Loki, but he countered it with a green force field.

"Oooh, nice try, doll, but it takes more than that to knock me off my throne." He turned to Terra and gave her a toothy grin. "Now, Terra, m'dear, let's talk business."

"Who are you?" Terra asked, totally lost.

"Your savior," Loki said. "If the world's gonna end, don't you wanna be with the one demon who can spare your lonely little life?"

"Hey!" Cyborg yelled, catching Loki off guard. He pointed his rusty sonic blaster at the demon and grinned. "I think Raven said _scram_!"

The surprised look on Loki's face when the energy surge hit him gave the Titans a hopeful smile. He fell off of his rock, but bounced back as he hovered in the air, snarling at them angrily. "This isn't over," he hissed and disappeared through the portal.

There was an odd quiet. Terra rubbed her elbow nervously.

Beast Boy let out a low whistle. "OK, now that that's over, how about we get Terra back to the tower and get her washed up, explain things a little?"

"Sounds good," said Robin, with a welcomed nod at the blonde girl that seemed a little stiff. "Terra," he said, coolly.

She smiled sheepishly and nodded. "R-Robin..." she muttered. She looked him up and down and then looked him in the eye again with raised eyebrows. "So, um, are you dead too?"

Raven snickered and Robin hit her. "No," he said simply.

Raven closed her eyes and shook her head, stepping forward. She smiled, wanly at the blonde girl, her eyes tired and worn. When she spoke, she spoke softly, in a hoarse but oddly warm whisper. "Welcome home, Terra."

Beside her, Cyborg smiled down approvingly at his half-demon friend. He looked up at Terra, a bit wary himself, but nodded his welcome with a kind glimmer in his eye.

"Terra!" Starfire exclaimed, warmly. "Oh, it will be honorable to fight next to you again."

Terra looked surprised. "H-honorable? Well, that's hardly a word I would have chosen."

"We all make mistakes," said Robin impassively. "If you can prove that what you did was just that, then I guess Starfire's right. It will be honorable to fight beside a great fighter."

Finally feeling at home, Terra smiled at his welcome.

* * *

She sat on the couch in the tower feeling overwhelmed. It had taken them about two hours to abbreviate fifteen years and the current situation. To Terra, it sounded like she didn't miss much if it only took two hours to tell all.

Looking around at them all, she deducted they all had their secrets about the past fifteen years. But not many wanted to share. Basically, she knew that Starfire had spent them as some higher being, Raven had gone all demonic and rose to power that way, Cyborg had been to war and back and now worked in a bar, and Robin had been stalking the city, hunting demons. And Beast Boy had been there, watching them all.

They were silent, staring at her and waiting for a reaction, but Terra's head was awhirl with thoughts and missing puzzle pieces. She was expected to help them save the world, but how? Nothing was making any sense.

Everything was so new to her, so fresh... Fifteen years she had been gone! While her friends were older and more experienced, after fifteen years she was still just a girl. She remembered seeing Robin for the first time, and that look in his eyes... Raven looked like a skeleton she was so slender now. Starfire still had her lively spark, but some of the youth was gone from her face. And Cyborg, with his rusted parts... All of it was almost... intimidating. She felt left behind somehow. She was no longer a part of their world.

"So..." Beast Boy finally said, to break the odd silence. "Questions... comments?"

Terra bit her lip and raised her eyebrows. "Actually... could I take a shower?"

* * *

The water felt alien to her dry skin. Bits of brown and gray washed out of her hair and into the sink. She felt like the earth had become a part of her and now it was all washing away... She was reborn. Brand new.

The attack had come so suddenly, she didn't even realize it was an attack and not just a splitting migraine. She gasped and her hands clutched for anything on the tiled walls to hold onto. Her nails dug into the plaster between the tiles and she bowed her head, the water drumming in her ears.

"Agh...!" Terra cried, grabbing at her scalp and tearing at her hair as if that was the problem. "Go _away_!"

****

Terra.

The voice was booming and omnipresent.

"What?" she whimpered, her eyes bleeding tears.

****

You are not one of them. You never were. That's why you were drawn to Slade.

"Who are you?" she asked, looking around. She stumbled out of the shower and looked at her self in the mirror.

****

I am the only thing on this planet that can keep you alive. Think about this logically, Terra. What if the Titans fail? It's impossible to fight Armageddon. Then what will there be? The nothingness. You don't want to die, do you Terra?

The voice hesitated, waiting for an answer, but the blonde girl provided none.

****

You know I'm right. The science of life was once summed up in one simple phrase. Survival of the fittest. Each living being looks after itself and itself alone. Do you really think they have forgiven you? You will be lost here, Terra. You belong with me. I will make no promises and I will tell you no lies. I look after myself. But you can help me. And in return, I will help you. And I will treat you like an equal.

Terra's eyes narrowed in thought and she bowed her head to stare at the sink. She was confused. "But... why do you need me?"

****

There is something your powers can help me attain. Without you, it will take much too much time. But it will still happen. I'd just prefer it were sooner rather than later. I will save your life if you simply lend me the use of your impressive talents. And then, you will have everything you ever wanted...

Terra was silent. Her hands clutched the edges of the sink. She looked up, her eyes ablaze with a rekindled flame. A twisted grin wiggled its way onto her face as a sinister idea formed in her tiny little blonde head.

"Well..." she said, wickedly. "You say jump..."


	9. The Bright Idea

**_Author's Note:_** Wow. KC, I totally forgot to reply to your comment. I think you're a fantastic writer. Needless to say, I would be _honnored_ to collaborate on a story with you! Haha. E-mail me, it's in the profile. I didn't respond to reviewers at _all_ last A/N session, so now is YOUR time. **VashTheStampede7123**-- I love RENT! Check out my profile for more favorite things we might have in common, and drop me a line sometime ;-). **Hoshi-ko88-- **I ship-hop. It's like barhopping, only with less alcohol. I ship every which way. This one is Rob/Rae with a little hint of Rob/Star (there's a big Rob/Rae finale-- good things come to those who wait). I hope the ship doesn't deter you from reading. I don't particularly like people who do that. But I like you nonetheless! **Bobalina**-- I'm curious... _How_ exactly does my story remind you of AI? LOL. **Archon of Midgard**-- Haha, a Stargate fan, wonderful. But I must confess a secret. I have a weakness for the show _Angel._ In it, the character Cordelia ascends to a higher plane as well. But I know about Daniel and his little trip (coincidentally from an Angel/Stargate crossover, haha).

As for the rest of you, I am _so_ happy you are enjoying this. My aim is to please. I was worried there was too much dialogue and it gets boring at parts, but I'm just self-critical haha. Thanks for all of your support. Sorry this took so long-- I've been putting it off as long as possible because... well... to tell you the truth, I've only written one sentence in the next chapter and I'm thinking of deleting those four words and starting from scratch. BUT THIS FIC IS ALMOST OVER. Check in soon for my upcoming events: "_Forgotten, but Never Gone"_ and "_A Hole in the World._"

Since I am very into personal plugs (and plugging other people, why just see my profile), here is a summary for both:

_Forgotten_: What if you were a boy who woke up one day with no memory of the past? You're given a name, find a best friend, and live the life you'd always known you wanted... And then realize there was a life left behind. A life of honor, duty, and friendship. Do you go back? Can you?

_Holes_: Starfire's body is inhabbited by a reincarnated demon. It causes her body great distress as she struggles to stay alive. Beast Boy and Raven set out to find its tomb before the demon decides to stay. Terra wrestles with guilt. Cyborg tries hard not to hope. And Robin... Robin tries to comfort Starfire and say all he never had before... Before he loses her for good. (plotline borrowed and elaborated on from the _Angel _episode of the same name-- I am not a thief!)

(PS: KC-- I wouldn't mind a little of your sage insight on both these projects. I think I have way too many projects).

Alright, alright, stop moaning, here's the story!

Chapter 8: The Bright Idea

"So long, Astoria. We found a map to buried treasure and even if we come home empty handed, we'll still have our stories, battle scars, pirate ships and wounded hearts, broken bones, and the best of friendships."– The Ataris, _So Long, Astoria_

– The Ataris, 

"Man, it takes a silly girl to lie about the dreams she has, but Lord it takes a lonely one to wish that she had never dreamt at all."– Dashboard Confessional, _Carve Your Heart Out Yourself_

– Dashboard Confessional,

* * *

The five Titans were together in the common room of the tower for the first time in years. Cyborg was pacing around, looking at the walls covered in old newspaper clippings. He emitted a low whistle to express his opinion. "Wow... you're like a serial killer, Rob."

"Excuse me?" Robin said, looking up at him from the couch with a cocked eyebrow.

Cyborg looked at him and shrugged. "You know, they often have little shrines to themselves on their walls. Clippings of articles about the murders they committed. Only, in your case, it's the murders you prevented."

"Hey, dude, you're right!" cried Beast Boy, excitedly. Robin shot him a look and he fell silent. But Starfire decided to join in on the conversation.

"So perhaps, since Robin is much unlike the killer of serials, he is in fact, the anti-killer?"

"Any relation to the antichrist?" Beast Boy blurted out.

"Hey!" Robin said, looking at him with a 'what did you say?' look on his face.

Beast Boy shrugged. "Hey man, I didn't mean to say it aloud."

But Cyborg was laughing. "C'mon, Rob, you have been a little bleak lately. Maybe you should lighten up."

"Well what about Raven?" Robin said in his defense, pointing at the silent demon in the corner. "She's pretty bleak herself, I mean just _look_ at her, that outfit screams suicidal!"

"Eureka!"

At this exclamation, all four other Titans turned to the grinning Raven.

"Eureka?" they all chorused.

She glared at them. "It's Greek, look it up."

"Eureka what?" Beast Boy asked. Raven seemed so ecstatic she seemed to buzz with excitement.

"I figured it out, what we have to do! The only thing we can do to stop him."

"What is it?" Starfire asked, intrigued. Raven was looking pointedly at Cyborg, but said nothing. Her gaze seemed to burn and he shifted uncomfortably under her scrutiny.

"Whaaat?" he whined with an odd pout. But she was grinning.

Even after fifteen years, it was strange to see this dark woman grin. The expression was alien, even and especially to the lips that wore it, but she wore it proudly, like a badge of hope.

"I'll need your help, Cyborg," she said.

"And what about the rest of us?" Robin asked with a skeptical raise of the eyebrows. But she just nodded at him.

"You all will shine, trust me," she said. "But right now, I need Cyborg."

"Yeah, Rae, what do you want?" he mumbled, slouching down on the couch.

"Is that anyway to speak to your superior, Cadet!" Raven snapped harshly. Cyborg was on his feet in an instant, something snapping in his brain, his eyes bright and smiling in spite of himself.

"Ma'am, yes ma'am!" he replied, saluting her. "With all do respect, the title is lieutenant."

Raven smiled and nodded in understanding. "Then Lieutenant. Forgive my disrespect. You are hereby promoted to General of the Earth Armed Forces. I trust the army is still standing."

"At your call, ma'am, ready to fight," Cyborg responded, standing tall and beaming with pride.

For the others, it was strange to watch this exchange. Cyborg and Raven, old friends, were treating each other like coworkers.

But then, Beast Boy thought to himself, beginning to figure things out, _That's what they are. Raven's rebuilding the Triad of Light._

, Beast Boy thought to himself, beginning to figure things out, 

In his excitement, the shape shifter too jumped to his feet and saluted his commanding officer. "Cadet Beast Boy reporting for duty, ma'am!"

Raven turned to him and nodded. "Colonel Logan," she corrected. "I have faith you won't let General Stone down."

"What are these formalities?" Starfire asked. "What is happening?"

Raven looked at Starfire long and hard. "Lance Corporal Star," she said. "You've just been enlisted in the Earth Army. How does it feel?"

"You're rebuilding the army," Robin noted, stating the obvious.

"You have eyes," said Raven in return. She studied him a moment. "Tell me, Robin, what position do you think you're eligible for?"

"What are we talking about?" It was Terra, standing at the top of the stairs in a robe and drying her hair with a towel. Raven looked up at her.

"We're building an army," she said, simply.

Robin stood up, strangely sweating slightly. He looked nervously at all his friends a moment. "Hey, um, I'll be right back, I just have to... go to the bathroom really quickly, OK?"

The other Titans watched him curiously as he walked by, brushing Raven by the shoulder, who had a brief premonition of his intentions. Her smile faded.

"I have to go too," she said quietly.

She found him right where she thought she would– on the roof. The air was so cold, he seemed to exhale smoke in the early morning light. But no... it wasn't _that_ cold. One look at his hand told her that it wasn't the temperature of the air that made his breath so black.

"When did you take up smoking?"

He spun around, caught off guard, and looked from Raven, to the cigarette in his hand. "God dammit, Raven, do you follow me everywhere?"

"I could tell you were up to something. So tell me. When?" she replied.

He turned away from her and looked out across the bay, taking another puff of his cigarette. "Go away. I haven't had a damn cigarette in twelve hours."

"Sounds like you're hooked. So is that why you've been so uptight all night?"

"I said piss off," Robin snarled, not looking back.

"Oooh, I see I struck a nerve," said Raven, walking over to him and leaning on the wall next to him. "Tell me, Robin... do you really hate me as much as you let on?"

"Gee, Raven, I don't know. Do you really hate me so much that you want to kill me?"

"That was harsh."

"So was murdering one of my best friends."

There was a silence between them a moment. Raven opened her mouth to speak, then turned away. She hesitated, then tried again.

"There's nothing I can say to erase what I have done," she said, quietly. "And I know there's nothing I can say to make you... I suppose I've always known. I guess that's why I freaked out. You confirmed my worst suspicions–"

"No, Rae," Robin interrupted, turning to face her at last. "_You_ did that all by yourself. You expected the worst and nothing _but_ the worst, therefore whatever reaction I gave you, you twisted to mean what it didn't. I..." But all of a sudden he had lost the words. The words that had haunted him for fifteen years, those specific words he had always tried to get rid of were finally gone when he needed them the most. "... don't hate you, Raven. I never did."

Raven looked at him, wide-eyed. "But you said... That night, here on this roof, you said..."

He looked at her with stone-cold eyes. "I said what you forced me to say. I made the mistake of a lifetime because I thought telling you what you wanted to hear would make things better. But it only made it worse. And it cost me Beast Boy's life."

Raven sighed. "That wasn't your fault. I should never even have thought, anticipated... I should never have hoped..."

But Robin was laughing. "Man, Rae," he said, with a sad smile, looking down at the water. "I mean... it takes a silly girl to lie about her dreams, but... You can't wish you'd never had them to begin with." He turned to face her, looking as compassionate as he ever had. "God, Raven, I can only imagine... Exactly how lonely are you?"

She turned away. "I always thought, always hoped, that I could one day get everything under control, that one day I wouldn't have to worry anymore. Fifteen years ago, I thought that maybe, _maybe_ I could do something good for once, instead of all the badness I was intended for. Maybe if I felt something pure, it would be reflected in the consequences. Now do you see what love brings? Death and betrayal. Fifteen years later, and I'm still afraid to tap that power. The most ancient, deepest of all human emotions, the ultimate power house of destruction. You see me now, master of the dark arts, queen of confidence, expert at controlling my powers. But I'm not. There are still leaks, Robin, and bad things happen. I'm like a black cat. Bad luck follows me wherever I go."

There was an odd sense of quiet that settled over them a moment.

"Sometimes I think I was lucky... to have a friend like you," Raven whispered.

"Why?" Robin spat, sounding bitter. "I threw you into another dimension."

"Exactly," said Raven, her voice barely audible. "You did what was best for our friends. What was safe. You got rid of me. If I'd stayed with you, Beast Boy might not have been the only dead one."

Robin looked at her a moment, startled. Because it was at exactly that moment that he realized she thought exactly like he did.

He fumbled in his pocket and took out his box of cigarettes. "Hey, um... you want one?" he asked, almost as a peace offering.

She shook her head and looked away. "I don't smoke. Never have. I never liked the effects things like that had on a person."

"Really?" Robin asked, putting out his cigarette and lighting up the one he'd offered Raven. "I always found them to be soothing."

"I guess_ you're _allowed to lose it every now and then," Raven mumbled.

Robin cocked an eyebrow at her. "It's not like I'm smoking a joint," he said. "They're just cigarettes."

Raven sighed, but didn't look at him, and he looked away in shame, because he could see that somehow, she knew that his troubles went far beyond cigarettes.

"Listen," he said. "Things have changed... with me."

"You're right," said Raven. "Because the Robin I know would never compromise his judgement for a quick high."

"It's not like that," he snapped.

"Not only that, but it affects your physical performance!" she said, and it was beginning to sound like a lecture. Robin would have none of it.

"Sometimes it improves it," he muttered through clenched teeth.

"Oh really?" Raven said, turning to him. "Which brand, Robin. Zoloft? Prozac? Ecstacy?"

"Speed," Robin screamed, just to spite her. But his voice tapered off into silence. "Methamphetamines... They make things... a little better, sometimes."

Raven shook her head sadly. "Robin, I'm so sorry..." she whispered to herself. "I'm so sorry I ever let you sink this low."

"You couldn't have done anything to stop it," Robin said.

"But I did everything to start it," Raven returned.

They were quiet again and each tried to tear their shame apart with blame. But they knew that it wasn't right. Nothing between them was right anymore.

"Rae, I'm... I'm sorry too."

Raven smiled up at him. "I know," she said. "I guess that's done then. The apologies."

"Yeah," said Robin smiling back. "So... we're pretty cool, then?"

"As cool as we'll get," Raven replied. "Now come back downstairs. You haven't yet enlisted in the army."

"I'd rather not," said Robin. "I don't do well as part of a team anymore."

Raven smiled. "OK. Then you can help me."

Robin bowed. "How may I be of service?"

* * *

The plan was exceedingly simple. Raven designated the Titans into three groups: Robin and Starfire were to go speak with Louis Cohen and his son. Cyborg and Beast Boy were off to gather the veterans of the interdimensional war. And Raven took Terra on her own mission.

"Where are we going?" Terra asked, whizzing through the sky on a rock platform with Raven by her side.

Raven smiled. "You and I need to have a little bonding time," she said, speeding off towards the horizon, which the sun was now completely above, creating an acute angle to the ocean.

Terra looked nervous. "So... you're taking me out to the middle of the ocean?" she said, looking around for any sight of land at all. She found none.

Raven laughed as she stopped and Terra went a little past her, then swung around.

"Oh my God, I get it!" she exclaimed, her eyes wide. "You're going to make it so they never find my body, aren't you?"

Raven tilted her head at Terra with a sigh. "You really think I'm going to kill you, don't you?"

"I betrayed you once," said Terra. "And... well, I don't mean to walk on thin ice, but you killed Beast Boy for nothing."

Raven shook her head. "I'm not going to kill you, Terra," she said, seriously. "We need you too damn much."

"That's all?" Terra said, with a raise of her eyebrow.

"... _I_ need you too damn much," Raven said, reluctantly. "I feel... less like an outsider with you around."

"Because I'm more of an outsider than you," Terra said, nodding in understanding.

"No, that's not it at all," said Raven. "I look at you... And I look at the way Beast Boy still looks at you... And then I look in your eyes. And you still have that bright look of a kid, Terra, because you still _are_ a kid. And I'm taken back to the days _before_ the accident, before I went crazy and made that unforgivable mistake. I remember what it was like... to have friends. And I missed that, having friends."

"... Even the ones that betrayed you?" Terra asked, timidly.

Raven smiled. "I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't," she said. "Now come on, we have work to do."

"Huh?" Terra asked, confused.

"I didn't bring you out here to kill you, Terra," said Raven, as a portal began to open in front of her. "I brought you here to see my home."

And before Terra could respond, Raven pulled her into the widening portal.

* * *

The enormous barracks warehouse was silent. He stared out at all of them with a hard gaze, remembering his war days and drawing strength from them. He held his head high and smiled at them all, young despite being veterans, only in their twenties, maybe thirties. The youngest, he noted, was only twenty-one. He must have been barely legal when he'd enlisted for the war. But the number was significantly less than it had been when he had served among them. Their own general, Warren Baker, had been hit with a lightning spell and burned instantly on the battlefield.

Not all the generals had fought with their men, but Baker had always thought it was his duty to lead them into battle, obviously an earth custom as Raven and the Lorethelian general had always stayed at camp to keep a step ahead of their enemy, unless there had been an attack.

That was the only time he had seen Raven in battle, but he had to admit she did look like a Goddess, with her long sword raised high above her head and her cry echoing in the bloody night like a siren across the land. She had never seen him, but he had always watched her. He watched after her more passionately than he looked after himself. She was always above her army, defending her home base, shouting orders from a hovering black cloud, throwing her own curses at the enemy, four eyes glowing red, tentacles flaring... She went all out when she was in battle, showing them no mercy. She was all demon in battle. And Cyborg had come to respect that. And when she was hit once, and fell to the ground, Cyborg had thrust his sword into the enemy shaman he'd been fending off and retreated back into the swarm of human bodies, pushing them aside, into the Azarath's ranks and he found her, groaning, winded from the blow. Her eyesight had been blurry and she had suffered some head trauma. Cyborg had grabbed her by the shoulders, fear-stricken and tried to bring her to her senses.

"Raven–" he had said, then remembered his place. "General– _get up!_ You're in a war zone here!"

Her eyes had gone red again, but she had looked up at Cyborg unseeing. "Soldier!" she cried.

Her urgent call and the sudden sense of apprehension had spurred instinct to grab her and move. And right as he did, a blast spell had blown that place to bits.

But that had been years ago. And she wouldn't remember that now anyway.

He stopped in his pacing, to the relief of his nervous regiment. The clinking of his heels on the floor had reminded them of the sound the tanks made as spells wheeled into them before they exploded.

He sighed and stared out at them, trying to see the face of each and every man before him. He wanted to look them in the eye. He wanted to gain their trust before he gained their respect.

"General Baker was a brave man," he said, his voice just over a whisper, but still echoing in the empty warehouse. "And you are all just as brave. He was one of us. You played poker with him. You told dirty jokes with him. He wasn't just your general. He was your friend. I know that, because he was my friend to. I was a lieutenant when I was among your ranks. And many of you were privates. And yet, he treated us like men _and_ soldiers, not just tools. But mostly, he fought beside us. He was a soldier. He was a leader. But now, he's dead. And again, Loki has become an imminent threat. This time, not just to the Lorethelians or life in general. No, now it's personal because he wants to take out all dimensions beginning with this one. He will obliterate us, like he obliterated those other unfortunate dimensions that couldn't stand up to him. We may not be the biggest of dimensions, but we're damned near the most determined, and this world has fought its fare share of wars.

"I see before me an international army, a thousand men and more on the way. Men from all the continents. Nonetheless, we'll have less than five thousand when we're all assembled. That's less than a tenth of what we had started with. But we will not go gently into that good night. We are not fighting for a nation or a cause. We are fighting for survival, pure and simple, the most straight forward cause since the dawn of our time. And we _will_ win."

The men were silent, but Cyborg saw that he had lit a fire in their eyes.

There was the echoing of footsteps and Cyborg looked up to see Beast Boy, who was grinning.

"They're outside," he said.

* * *

Starfire and Robin waited outside the door, both visibly anxious. They had been standing there a while, but neither one had mustered up enough courage to ring the doorbell.

"What will I _say_?" Robin asked, for the seventeenth time. Again, Starfire could provide no answer. "I mean... God, his fiancé just got blinded."

"No," Starfire said, staring at the door. "She is not blind. She sees... the future. And nothing else."

"What do you say to a person?" Robin asked. "'Hi, I'm sorry your fiancé got cursed, can you do us a favor?'"

Starfire looked at him and shook her head. "I do not believe that is the correct thing to do. Too insensitive... too insincere."

Robin smiled at her. "God, you really haven't changed, have you?" he said, deciding not to point out that he'd been sarcastic.

"Change is relative," she replied evenly, reminding him of Beast Boy.

He grinned. He loved everything about her. "Starfire, there's something..."

But she put a finger to his lips, knowing what he was going to say. "Hush, Robin," she whispered. "We must not speak of such things."

Robin frowned at her, confused. "Why don't you want me to say it?" he asked.

Starfire turned away from him and grasped the railing that framed the porch they stood on. She looked down at the begonias below. She wanted to say the truth, but of all the things she had to sacrifice to save the world, the burden of knowledge, knowing what would happen should she say the wrong thing, knowing what must happen for it to succeed, was by far the worst. She knew what she must say. And she had practiced the lie for years.

"Because... Robin, the sentiment... is not returned." For the first time out of all the times she had practiced it, she had actually said it as indifferently as Chrona had told her to. Her voice didn't even quiver once.

However, she couldn't bare his silence, and she couldn't bare not knowing the look on his face. But when she turned around, he was more confused than angry.

"Starfire... that's impossible. Even when we were kids, you always..."

"You are my best friend, Robin," Starfire said, her eyes bright with sincerity, but her voice as gentle as a spring wind. "Beast Boy, Cyborg and Raven... I would die for any of them. But you are my purpose, Robin. I would be nothing if you were anything less than you are. But I cannot love you in the sense you wish me to.."

"Cannot..." Robin said, slowly. "Or will not?"

"Robin, what do you mean?" Starfire asked, as if this notion was completely irrelevant.

"There's something keeping you from saying it," Robin said, scrutinizing her. "But I can't see what."

Starfire did an irritated and uncharacteristic sigh, showing that she was no longer interested in the conversation. "Robin, I am so sorry. But what you want is impossible."

"I just can't figure out why it's impossible," said Robin, still looking for an ulterior motive.

"Because," Starfire snapped, becoming angry. But Robin hadn't felt he'd been that inflammatory. "Because for the final time I do not reciprocate!"

She sounded so agitated, Robin dare not question further. But in truth, her irritation only heightened his suspicions. The emotion was so uncharacteristic of her that it just made everything else so surreal, her reaction insincere. Something was wrong and she refused to share.

It was at this last thought that he decided he would press on despite her agitation.

"Starfire, you're going to tell me what's going on or–"

But she was ringing the doorbell, ignoring him. He was caught off guard. He still had no idea what he was going to say.

It was a moment before anyone came to the door. Locks turned and it opened a crack with the sliding chain lock still in place. The weary eye that peered out at them now was different than the vibrant one that had flung open the door before. The brown eye frowned before closing the door and undoing the chain lock.

Louis stood in the doorway looking like he hadn't slept at all that night. There were bags under his eyes and his hair was disheveled. But he managed a welcoming smile.

"Hi there, Robin, Starfire. What do you guys need now?" he asked with a sigh.

Robin looked at Starfire briefly, annoyed that she had rang the doorbell without warning. But he took a deep breath and sighed.

"We need your help again," he said slowly, feeling exceptionally awkward. "Raven has a plan to defeat Loki once and for all."

Louis's smile broadened and that fire returned to his eyes. "You want me to call the army."

"And you're a regular mind reader," Robin acknowledged with a nod.

Louis's smile faded a bit but remained in place as he shrugged. "Well we have one in the household now at any rate. Kinda saw you guys coming."

"Dad?" came Josh's voice from inside. "Is that them?"

"You bet, Josh," called Louis over his shoulder.

There was the clatter of someone running down stairs. Josh threw open the door, his eyes cold and determined, somehow older than he'd looked the night before.

"Great," said Josh, looking at them with steely eyes, his expression inscrutable. "General Johan is dead. Assassinated by some rebels who've joined Loki's ranks. Apparently, he's promised them survival after the end of all life as we know it."

"So who's the new General?" Robin asked.

"Lorethel is in an uproar," he said. "They're screaming for blood. And... I promised to give it to them."

"What?" Robin stared at Josh, dumbstruck. The boy was rather short and didn't look like the leading type. However, he shared that crazy fire with his father. And with that, Robin was sure he could win any battle.

Josh nodded. "I'm leading the Lorethelian army into battle. We have four thousand men, at the ready. Not a substantial contribution, but a contribution nonetheless."

Robin smiled. "We'll be glad to have it... Sir," he said with a nod.

Terra was aghast as they approached a large cathedral-like fortress made of black stone with looming towers topped with long and sharp gold spires that seemed to reach into the heavens. For some reason, it seemed to Terra like a colossal sleeping dragon with shining teeth. Some of the higher ledges proved to be the gargoyles' haunts as their hideous faces leered at the town below. Their faces were so twisted and deformed, Terra felt like she was walking straight into Hell itself.

They walked up the wide black marble steps and approached the huge ebony doors, etched with gold leaf. The elegantly carved scene depicted gruesome images that seemed to be taken directly from Dante's inferno. As the light from the purple sky hit the door the gold seemed to make the creatures come alive. Though they were grotesque and surreal, they seemed like they could jump out and bite whoever passed them by.

Before they came close enough to admire the masterful craftsmanship, the doors swung open, revealing a long passageway complete with red carpet and shifty looking guards. The guards, who seemed to be clad in woven shadows, fell to their knees and averted their eyes, which were pure red with no visible pupils, irises or corneas. Their forms were shady, shifting with the wind, and for a moment Terra wondered if they weren't _wearing_ shadows, but were _made_ of shadows.

Her companion took no notice of these unusual creatures and walked right by, her head held high like a queen, as Terra followed sheepishly behind her. The hallway they passed through was littered with portraits and paintings of twisted surreal and mythological scenes that made Terra feel like she was in the heart of Count Dracula's castle. But near the end of the hall, she received her biggest shock.

As she stared at all the paintings in awe, at this Azarath king and that Azarath duchess, she came to a halt in front of a very familiar looking portrait with the only remotely normal looking subject. Raven, not noticing, continued on her way down the hall, but Terra was flabbergasted.

"Raven..." she called to her companion, eyes never leaving the canvas. "This portrait is of you!"

Raven looked briefly over her shoulder then shrugged. "I think they made my nose too big."

"But... this is _you_!" Terra said again, as if it was the most absurd thing in the world. She looked at the title of the portrait on the frame. _Raven of Azarath, General of the World's Armed Forces 1642-Present._ "You're over three hundred and fifty years old!"

Raven rolled her eyes as she continued down the long corridor. "Don't be ridiculous," she said. "That's Azarath's measurement, Terra. Look at the next line."

Terra frowned, but did as Raven said. _Age of the Dragon_.

"I don't get it," she said, running to catch up.

Raven sighed. "Azarath is older than 1650 years, Terra," said Raven. "But we have different periods. Much like BC or AD or more like the Middle Ages or the Industrial Age. The date today is Day 12 of the Month of Ares, Year 1647 of the Age of the Dragon."

"Sounds like a mouthful," Terra muttered.

Raven smiled. "That's why we just call it Ares 12, 1647. See? Not so much different form Earth is it?"

Terra was about to answer when another set of grand oak doors swung open in front of them and she bit her tongue.

Not so different at all... she thought sarcastically as she stared in awe at the next chamber.

They seemed to be in some sort of throne room. The room was filled with colored light shining through stained glass windows. The windows seemed to be the only thing anywhere that depicted something natural and beautiful. The focus of every single stained glass window was a rose in bloom.

The red carpet continued down the center and up a few more wide marble steps, leading to something that looked more like a giant pipe organ than a throne which dominated the room. The grandiose chair was entirely black with more sharp spikes crowning it. It seemed drizzled with gold and had red velvet cushions. It was scattered with blood-red rubies and more ornate carvings.

To Terra, everything about Azarath seemed larger than life.

"Raven, excellent."

Terra jumped at the voice and realized that she had been so taken aback by the throne she hadn't realized there was someone _sitting_ on it.

The man that sat upon the throne– if he could be called a man at all– was strange looking to say the least. Terra supposed it was what the average Azarath demon looked like. Horns and black tentacles and glowing red eyes and very menacing.

"Argatron, Your Highness" said Raven, sounding uncharacteristically warm, her voice echoing in the high ceilings. "My old friend. I have a favor to ask of you."

Terra looked from the demon to her fellow Titan in a mixture of awe and confusion.

A terrible grin spread across his features and Terra realized with horror that inside his mouth were rows upon rows of jagged teeth, like a shark's. He leaned forward in his throne sinisterly, his tentacles flying all over the place, playing like shadows on the wall.

"Ah, General, how may my demons be of service to you?"

"Loki." The single word changed the entire atmosphere of the room. The temperature lowered a few degrees and the stained glass windows were glazed with a black shadow that emanated from the Demon King. His tentacles went wild and Terra yelped and hid behind Raven.

"You dare speak that name in my presence?" hissed Argatron.

"There is an initiative to kill him."

The light returned and the tentacles relaxed as the demon smiled a more, surprisingly pleasant smile. He folded his tentacles and leaned back in his chair.

"Oh, well then why didn't you say so?" he said in the happy tone of voice of a game show host. For the first time he acknowledged Terra's presence and smiled at her cheesily. "How are yeh girlfriend, doing well? Oh my God, I love your hair, where do you get it done?"

"Argatron, if we could focus on the task at hand," Raven pressed, rolling her eyes behind closed lids, praying for patience.

Argatron snapped to attention and nodded at Raven, his expression serious. "Very well," he said, still in that cheesy game-show-host voice. "Um, but I should remind you, we've tried the whole killing thing before, didn't work."

"He's vulnerable now," said Raven. "He won't admit it, but we hit him hard in the last war. He lost almost as many troops as we did, and he lost more to abandonment and betrayal. His troops weren't as loyal as ours were. His army is severely depleted, and if we pool our forces with the Earth and Lorethelian armies again, we can win."

"We didn't win last time."

"But we will this time," Raven insisted. "We have to. He's fulfilling his destiny. He is summoning Ragnarok."

"Ragnarok can only be stopped by one force," said Argatron, slowly. "The one the Norse called Thor. God of all things. We know not what this symbolizes, what this is..." Slowly, his gaze shifted to Terra. "Or is that what the girl is for?"

"Terra is not Thor," Raven said with an almost mocking scoff. But she frowned. When she said the two names in the same sentence, they did have a similar ring. Could that have been what Karen meant? Why they needed the forgotten soldier?

"Whatever," said Argatron with a sigh, leaning back in his chair. "Do what you want. It's your army. I trust your judgement. Go wild, have a party. I support you 110!"

"I appreciate that, Argatron," said Raven.

Argatron grinned. "Anything for family."

As they walked out of the castle, Terra couldn't help but ask. "Argatron said that you two were..."

"Distantly," Raven said quickly, not looking at her as she strode elegantly down the steps. "Through marriage. Second cousin once removed's son in law. Or... something to that effect."


	10. The Last Great War

**_Author's Note:_** OK, I know it's been a HELL of a long time! But I swear-- the next chapter is the last. Promise. Thanks for keeping up with this anyway. You guys are swell. Enjoy.

* * *

Chapter 9: The Last Great War

_"When you lose a part of yourself to somebody you know, it takes a lot to let go. Every breath that you remember... Pictures fade away, but memory's forever. An empty chair at all the tables. And I'll be seeing you when all my days boil down. For now we'll say goodbye. We know it's not the last time. I've lost the best part of my days. But it's better where you're going anyway."–_ New Found Glory,_ Sonny_

_"Find one song, one last refrain, glory from the pretty-boy front man who wasted opportunity. One song, a song about love, glory like a sunset. One song to redeem this empty life..."–_ Roger,_ RENT!_

* * *

They waited. For what they waited for, even their generals couldn't tell you. But they waited like an ocean awaiting an inevitable storm to churn its waves. They looked calm. But there was a buzz within the camp. Soldiers were restless and scared out of their minds. They all remembered the horrors of the last war. 

Including Cyborg.

He hid in his tent, slouching over a desk in the corner and rubbing a hand over his old, tired eyes. Jump City had seen too much. And so had he.

This was a war. A real war. Starfire and Beast Boy, even with the wisdom that came with age, could not imagine what they were up against. It was amazing that after all these years, after all they'd been through, he still felt like he needed to protect them. Robin could always take care of himself and Raven would kill anyone who tried to protect her. Terra had always been on her own. But the other two always seemed too bright to be hit with all the darkness of the world.

And it was they who had suffered most of all.

Beast Boy's decent from his high-on-life happiness started with Terra. He grew up a little, the day that she had betrayed them, though Cyborg knew that he had never wanted to. That's why even death couldn't take away his child-like charm. He wouldn't let it. He knew what the world was made of. He had stared the Grim Reaper in the eye and seen the sorrows circumstance could bring. But he wouldn't let it seize his spirit. He had already lost a part of his innocence to Terra. No. Not even death itself could take away his optimism.

Beast Boy had told them that he really had no form. That he assumed his old one because it was the easiest and would comfort his friends. But Cyborg felt that, in truth, he really just liked being a kid. And with Terra back, he could see the life in Beast Boy's eyes again. Because with her, she had brought back that part of himself he had lost. With Terra, he was whole again. And Cyborg knew he wouldn't let that go again for anything.

Starfire's dreams were shattered with Beast Boy's bones. Throughout everything they had ever been through, including Terra's betrayal, she had always seen things with an optimistic eye. She had been their very own silver lining to everything. When in doubt, talk to Starfire, and she could always lift your spirits. But he had seen the look in her eyes when she drifted off over the sea that night. The darkness had broken her. And she had been angry that she couldn't break it back. Even now, upon her return, there was something else in her. Her smile could always make anyone feel happier, but it no longer reached those bright green eyes. She seemed as though she had lost something very dear to her and it would never return.

"You busy?"

Cyborg was jolted from his reveries by a cool voice that had come from the entrance of his tent. Nodding, he turned with a brotherly smile. "Raven," he said, his heart warming. She returned the sentiment with a smile of her own, encouraging and free of frustration. Something had changed in her as well. "You're smiling..."

"I do smile, Cyborg," she said furrowing her brow and strengthening her grin.

"You're happy." Cyborg rephrased the sentiment, but he knew that Raven had understood what he'd meant from the beginning.

"I am," she agreed. "Robin and I have reached a truce. We've discovered a way to bring down my worst enemy. Chrona is on our side. And I have no doubt that we will win."

"I've missed you," said Cyborg softly. "I don't know if I told you that since we met. I don't think I've said it to anyone."

"Where did this pointless expression of emotion come from?" Raven said monotonously, sounding like her old self. Cyborg laughed.

"You're happy," he said. "I'm not. I feel like... like this war isn't good for our team. Raven... I feel like I'm going to lose you."

"You won't lose me," said Raven. "I have you to knock me out of danger."

"Yeah, but I–" Cyborg stopped mid-sentence and frowned. He looked up at her and she was grinning wryly. "But I thought... You didn't recognize me?"

"Please," said Raven. "Do you really think I've become that arrogant?"

"You didn't even know I was in the army..." said Cyborg.

"I didn't believe it," said Raven, walking towards the make-shift bed and stroking the sheets. "I thought I was hallucinating when I saw you. I couldn't believe you were really there."

Cyborg rose from his chair and smiled at Raven's back. "I don't want to lose you again. Not then. Not now. Not ever."

Raven turned and shook her head. "I told you, Cyborg," she said. "I'm not going to die."

"Someone is," said Cyborg. He sighed. "Goddamn it, what am I saying? _Everyone_ is! I can probably guarantee that ninety percent of the soldiers in this camp today won't be here tomorrow. Raven, the Titans have been separated for fifteen years and for what? To die in one grand last stand. A Titan will die in that battle, Raven, I can guarantee that as much as I can anything else. Most likely more than one. Maybe me, maybe you, maybe both."

"And maybe we _won't_," Raven reassured him, grabbing him by the shoulders. "You're a soldier, Cyborg, you knew the risks when you enlisted and you still did it because you knew that you could make a difference. But I want you to promise me something, Cyborg. If you ever feel like you can't make it, you run like hell, do you hear me? Don't be a hero, Cyborg, for once in your life, just run and get the hell out of there as fast as you can. Do exactly like you did before and I can guarantee _you_ Cyborg that at least one Titan _will_ make it out alive. You have to promise me that."

Cyborg looked at her, stunned. He was twice to three times her size, and yet she scared him. She was panicked, he could see it in her eyes. All he could do was nod.

"I promise," he said.

And without warning, she wrapped her arms around him and buried her face in his metal chest. "You have to make it. You've been my most loyal friend throughout this whole thing. Maybe you didn't give me what I deserved, but you gave me what I needed. And I thank you for that."

All of a sudden, the earth began to shake, and a young Azarath demon was at the entrance to the tent, looking flustered. Raven broke contact with Cyborg immediately and went straight into General-Mode.

"General!" said the youth, his voice quaking. "There's-there's– an earthquake– an attack. Now."

"Organize the troops," she said. "Tonight we fight."

It wasn't hard to find the source of the quake. It had come from the heart of the city. The energy waves had blown over the camp, knocking almost everyone off their feet.

The Titans arrived at the center of the city where a large beam, a mile in diameter was reaching down from the sky and drilling into the Earth.

"Titans!" cackled Loki, rubbing his claws together gleefully. "So glad you could make it for the show."

"Never understood you villains," said Robin. "Why destroy the world?"

"Simply because I can," said Loki. "And it gets rid of the people I don't like. Which is everyone."

"Figures," said Raven. "You never were that social."

"Sorry to ruin your plans," said Robin. "But the world isn't ending today."

At his words, an army of thousands appeared behind them, demons, humans, and wizards, all allies in a fight to preserve life on earth as they knew it.

"I'm afraid the odds aren't in your favor," sneered Loki. "Especially with your loyalty records."

"What are you talking about?" demanded Beast Boy, angrily.

"Easy there, he's trying to distract us, his words never meant anything," Raven assured Beast Boy.

"Raven?" Starfire said, her eyes wide, staring behind her friend. "I do believe that in this instance, his words count for _something_." Slowly, Raven turned to see what Starfire was looking at.

High above the ground, maintaining the huge beam, Terra flew with her arms out stretched, her eyes glowing yellow and her hair flying wildly.

"No..." Beast Boy said, his voice barely a whisper.

Raven was fuming. "No!" She yelled, angrily, and launched herself at Terra knocking her out of the sky.

It was with this move that the fight began in earnest. The Light Army fought valiantly against Loki's vicious hell beasts bent on world destruction, creatures lower than low, bottom feeders of the underworld that were waiting for their time in the sun.

The Titans kicked into battle mode and took on their enemies with enthusiasm, fighting with the vigor they had been so famous for in their youth. Beast Boy impaled four demons on the horn of a triceratops; Starfire blasted anyone within a two meter radius of her; Cyborg charged his cannon and shot down five attackers in one go; Robin went wild with his sword which had slaughtered many demons in the past and was still hungry for blood.

Raven and Terra were nowhere in sight...

Loki laughed wickedly as he observed the battle from his spot safely above them. He watched as the beam Terra had helped him create continued to drill into the center of the earth. Soon, it would reach the core, upsetting the magnetic fields and erupting molten rock onto the earth. Up in the sky, It would tear a whole in the fabric of time and space and chaos would rain. Disease. Pestilence. Famine. War. The hell beasts of legend would rise at the call of the earth and swallow the sun and the moon, plunging the world into darkness. The oceans will freeze and the core will cool. And then the world will grow cold and still.

No more wars.

No more Teen Titans.

No more inferiority complex.

Just blackness and cold.

This is what he'd been waiting for. And the Titans had given him a good fight. That had been what he was hoping for. Hell, he didn't want to destroy the world if it was too _easy_. It just played up to his brilliance, how wonderful his plan had worked. He had defeated armies. He had defeated the famous Teen Titans. And now, he had defeated God himself.

He stared into the beam, so bright only Morlin demons had eyes strong enough to look at it. But wait... What was this shadow?

He laughed again. Beyond the light, he could make out the forms of a slender female and a young girl wrestling on the ground. At last, he had finally hit Raven where he knew it hurt– her heart. The heart he had once longed to impress. Until he realized he didn't believe in love. And that she was a bitch. One he felt no remorse in exterminating.

He had seen the way Raven opened up to Terra. He saw the way Raven trusted her, even though her better instincts told her not to. It seems trust is always given to those who least deserve it.

He wasn't sure who would win. After all, powerful as she may be in her own right, Terra was only a child, and one that had been locked in stone for fifteen years. How could she even compete against an Azarath General twice her age? It didn't matter. Loki enjoyed watching them fight to the death. And he knew Raven would kill Terra if given the chance. Killing was second nature to her now...

But wait? Where did they go? The fighting pair had disappeared from the battle. His eyes darted around. He saw citizens of Azarath getting their heads sliced off, humans being pierced by daggers, wizards being destroyed by spells, his own demons being obliterated, and Robin, Starfire, Cyborg and Beast Boy fighting valiantly in the mix. _But where was Raven and Terra?_

Terra had been the most brilliant part of the plan. He wasn't ready to miss the ending when he'd stayed for the previews.

All of a sudden he felt a sharp pain between his scaley shoulder blades and Loki was pitched forward off his thrown and into the swarm of bodies.

The crowd cleared, some demons pausing to look at their fallen leader only to be cut in half by Robin's long sword. Loki spun around to see who dared attack him, ready to snarl and literally bite of their head– only to see the girl he thought was on his side.

"Something you oughta know about me, Loki," Terra hissed, Raven standing proudly by her side. "I'm _no one's_ apprentice."

"Fool!" Loki screamed. "You opened the portal– willingly!"

"And she can close it," Raven said. She looked at Terra. "Terra told me of your invasion of her head. We sorted it out. You needed her to open the portal– and only the one who opens it can close it forever. We couldn't rely on you to open and close it, so we sent her in, willingly, _knowing_. Always one step ahead."

Loki looked shocked for a moment but recovered quickly as a sinister grin twisted his features. "One step ahead, eh?" said Loki. "Tell me, Raven dear, in all your books on Ragnarok, did they tell you _how_ you stop the apocalypse?"

"Thor," said Raven. She looked at Terra with a smile. "Ancient Morlinian for 'link' or 'lock.' Karen called Terra the link. It wasn't that hard to figure out after a while."

"No," said Loki. "Not what I'm saying. I mean _how_ this link is supposed to _stop_ the end of the world."

Raven's face went blank. But Terra was looking at the light, her eyes wide, a smile that was wise beyond her years slowly spreading over her face like a blanket of understanding.

"I know what I have to do..." she said.

She ran towards the light and Raven looked at Loki, now furious. "What is she going to do?"

Loki watched the blonde run, his eyes agleam. "Die trying."

Raven's eyes went wide as she realized Terra's intentions. Dropping Loki, she ran after her friend and then quickly lifted off the ground, flying fast and knocking Terra off her feet.

"You can't do it!" Raven exclaimed, frantically.

"I have to," says Terra. "It's the only way."

"_Not_ the only way," Raven insisted, grasping at straws. "Karen said... Link, balance, martyr, key... Key. Robin. I have to find Robin!" Raven exclaimed. "Don't _move_!"

As she ran, she jumped over bodies of demons she had known well but ignored it. So long as her friends weren't on the ground, so long as Robin wasn't on the ground...

Robin.

Oh God, if she lost him now...

She found him fighting next to Starfire, fighting with all they had left.

Starfire saw her first and her eyes grew sad, but Raven was too preoccupied to notice. Before she could get to Robin, Starfire grabbed her and lifted her into the air, out of harm's way.

"Not now, Starfire," Raven said.

"Now is the best time," Starfire said so sternly it made Raven stop. She looked at Starfire quizzically.

"What do you mean, Starfire?"

Starfire was watching Robin, with all her heart. "I do love him, Raven," she said in a whisper that somehow Raven heard louder than the roar of war. "I hope that one day he can understand that, what I have to do... I will always love him." Starfire turned to face Raven, smiling sadly. "I did not need Karen to tell me my place. I knew what it was. I was never meant to be his. I have to let him go."

"Starfire, what are you talking about?" Raven said, getting a little restless.

Starfire looked at her sternly now. "I have seen it in you as I have felt it inside myself. It burns, it dances, it warms, but it never dies. No matter how deep you burry it, you know, you always know, that he is there, and that he will always be there. Believe me, Raven, I understand that more than anyone. I spent fifteen years burying it. And yet, I still feel the flame licking my wounds. He will always be there."

Without warning, Starfire wrapped her arms around Raven and whispered a secret in her hair. "I knew this day would come for years... I had hoped that somehow it wouldn't hurt this much. But I have known, much longer than fifteen years, that you two were born for each other. He refuses to see it. You refuse to see it. But believe me when I tell you Raven that the both of you _must _see it if you wish to stop this. It is something that must be done. You are the key."

Raven pulled away. "But I thought Robin was the key."

Starfire smiled and Raven was soothed because she was reminded of the younger, more carefree Starfire. "You misunderstood. You are _both_ the key."

Raven laid a hand on Starfire's shoulder. "I love you Starfire," Raven said, sincerely, before darting off to Robin.

Starfire touched where Raven's hand had been. "I love you too," she whispered to herself. She descended into the battle and kept on fighting.

* * *

Terra looked at Raven's retreating back and then to the beam. 

"She doesn't understand..." she whispered to herself. "I have to do this alone."

All of a sudden, she was knocked off her feet, and something started slamming its fists into her face with such furious power she yelled in pain. The blood blinded her, but she could hear a voice above the noise of the battle.

"... never again, I thought you learned, you traitor! You can't even get it together for the end of the world and I loved you so much..."

The punches became weaker and soon stopped all together. Terra wiped the blood away from her eyes and saw Beast Boy sitting on top of her, looking down, his chest heaving as he sobbed.

"Beast Boy..." Terra said with a weak smile. She reached up to touch his cheek but he batted her hand away.

"I can't believe I fell for you again..." he whispered.

"Beast Boy, I didn't betray you," Terra reassured him. "Please, I promise."

"I _saw_ you!" he hissed. "I'm not that stupid anymore, OK, I may not look it but I grew up too! Or... or maybe I am. Some people never outgrow their stupidity..."

"You're not stupid," Terra said with a laugh. "Believe me. Raven and I, it was all part of the plan. You can ask her. We couldn't tell you. Couldn't risk it. I could only tell Raven when we were out of this dimension because Loki has eyes _all_ over this one! He had to believe it, otherwise we couldn't do it. I opened it to close it, Beast Boy, because only I can do that!"

Beast Boy's eyes glittered in the starlight as he looked at her, filled with hope.

"You mean... you didn't... you never..." And with that, he fell on top of her and embraced her, rolling on the ground as she laughed. "Oh I love you, I love you, I love you..."

"I love you too," she whispered, out of breath and in pain. But she didn't care, so long as Beast Boy said those words...

But she had to do it.

She pulled herself up and Beast Boy saw the damage he'd inflicted on her. "Oh God," he said. "I am _so_ sorry!"

Terra laughed. "It doesn't matter," she said, bravely, staring at the light beam. "It won't last long." She looked back at Beast Boy who looked confused. She took a step towards him, but hesitated and turned away. It was best he didn't know.

"Terra..." he said, slowly.

"Beast Boy," she said, turning back to him with a smile. "I don't belong here anymore. I should have died fifteen years ago."

"Terra..." Beast Boy repeated, more seriously.

She grabbed him by the shoulders. "I love you," she said. "So damn much, it didn't go away when I was trapped in that stone. And it won't go away, do you hear me?"

"No..." he said, realizing what she was saying. "Terra, you've been given the chance to live again– I would die _again_ to have that chance! You never had a life, Terra, it was snatched away from you cruelly. You can't just throw it away!"

"I have to," said Terra, looking at the light. "It's the only way."

"No," said Beast Boy.

Terra grinned. "You sound like Raven."

"Terra, you don't understand," said Beast Boy angrily. "You have no idea what I'd give to be alive again. I've been in this ghost-like form for fifteen years, and I've seen a lot, but I've never lived, Terra."

Terra grabbed him and kissed him hard. Pulling away, their noses touching, she looked him in the eyes daringly. "Then die," she said.

And with that, she ran at the beam.

"TERRA!" Beast Boy screamed.

* * *

"Robin!" Raven screamed as she approached him. 

"Busy!" he called back.

"But there's something I have to tell y–"

And at that very moment, Robin was hit with a heavy curse. Raven's heart plummeted into her stomach as a chill ran down her spine. _No_, she said to herself, _this isn't how it's supposed to happen!_

She ran to him, the man she had avoided for fifteen years, the man she wished she had been closer to, the man who understood her more than anyone else because he was exactly the same.

He was cold.

"NO!" Raven screamed, tears streaking down her cheeks. "No..."

She flew him to a rooftop so he wouldn't be mutilated by the horrors going on in the streets.

For the first time in ten years, her powers began to get the better of her, pulsing around her like a bomb ready to blow. She caressed his bruised cheek with the back of her fingers and for a moment, he was no older than that boy she had known so long ago, before the demons, before the mistakes. He was truly Robin again. No Nightwing. No broken team.

She began to cry in earnest. _This was not how it was supposed to end_... His head rested in her lap as she grieved and she realized for the first time in her life just what she thought of Robin.

He was smart. He was detached. He was focused. He was brave. He was a hero. He was exactly like Raven. And she respected him for everything he had ever done, because she knew that in his place she would have done the exact same thing. The reason they had hated each other so much... was because they had hated themselves. They had seen a part of themselves in each other and it drove them crazy. They had seen their love for each other and it drove them apart.

"No..." Raven whispered, kissing Robin's forehead. "Wake up, please..."

And as if by some divine intervention, he heard her.

Robin stirred and looked up at Raven, confused. "Raven?" he said.

So overwhelmed by relief, Raven grinned through her tears. "Oh my god... I thought you were..."

Robin smiled. "That old curse? Nah. Been hit with that millions of times, all it does is stun me." She stood up and helped him to his feet. He noted her tears. "Raven, I..."

"Sh," she said holding a finger to his lips and smiling. "No words. Not now. So much has been said yet so little has been understood. Until now."

"I just wanted to say," Robin said, "that I..."

But he trailed off as they neared each other. Through words, they drove each other mad. But in silence, they knew what words could never explain. His arms held her tightly to him and their eyes slowly closed.

And the world stood still for their silent soliloquy.


	11. A Little Fall of Rain

**_Author's Note:_** I love you all... again, much apologies for the delay, it's been done a while. Note: Yes, I stole a scene from Les Miz (hense the title of the chapter) and morphed it into my own. It's just good fun, and I was listening to the Les Miz soundtrack and it made me sad which is good cuz it's supposed to be sad. So now that all the legalities are done, enjoy and I hoped this story kept you somewhat entertained... It disappointed me, to be frank. Oh well, sorry if I got your hopes up in the first author's note, but it's not that bad. Happy reading.

Chapter 10: A Little Fall of Rain

_"I wish there was something I can say to erase each and every page you've been through even though it's not my place to save you. I appreciate but can't accept this thank you note that's sealed with your last breath and I won't stand aside and listen to you give up."_– The Ataris, _My Reply_

_"Why are entire years strewn on the cutting room floor of memory when single frames from one magic night forever flicker in close-up on the 3D Imax of my mind?"–_ Mark,RENT!

* * *

There was a blast of white from the blackest soul and the world froze for just a moment as wickedness turned to ash and the righteous were spared as if by some miracle of God... 

Only she was a demon.

That tingling of emotion burst through her like fire and gun powder. The epicenter of a grand miracle, she and Robin were the last souls alive entwined in each other engulfed by the white that they barely noticed. The power had built up for years, the power she had never trusted to do anything good was finally proving her wrong. When she gave in to herself she finally had the chance to show that she wasn't just made for disaster.

She was a key.

She and Robin had unlocked an explosive power that continued on past the Jump City boundaries, annihilating all the mistakes that they had let into the world, and demolishing Loki's army in one fell swoop.

Loki himself, indeed, felt as though he had been hit by a massive explosion of radiation. His scales were on fire with Raven's mystic napalm. Alone in a gutter, he looked up at the sky and saw the stars fading away and he thought to himself, _Well damn. At least I got what I wanted_. And indeed he did. His world was ending.

Starfire and Cyborg, fighting together, lowered their arms as their opponents literally turned to ash before their eyes. The dust drifted away on the winds and floated towards the sun peeking over the edge of the sea.

"_Terra!_"

The call echoed across continents and dimensions, the mournful cry of one who had lost everything that had ever meant anything to him. In reality, the only thing that was his reason for clinging to the last shred of existence he had left.

It had happened so fast, he had to slow it down in his memory to make sure it had happened at all. She had left him so suddenly, she turned her back and ran, her hair flying behind her like a flag of glory. She took off from the ground in a massive leap, caught by a rock that spiraled her around the beam, lifting her higher and higher until, without hesitating, she leapt for the center of the bright beam and was magnified by shadow. Her hair flailed madly behind her like some holy Medusa.

And after a moment, in less than a second, the portal closed and the ground caved in on itself as she came crashing down to earth like a fallen angel.

As the light faded, the rains came to wash away the ash and blood that lined the streets of the city. It fell quietly and tenderly, as if knowing the sacredness of the scene it cleansed.

He caught her on the back of a pterodactyl, a creature that had died long ago as he should have done. Slowly, he landed trying to be as smooth as possible. His wings folded around her like a blanket and slowly she turned and opened her weary eyes to see his childish face, his hair wet and his cheeks damp from sources other than the rain.

"Oh God, Terra..." he whispered. "What did you do?" She moaned and turned her head away. Beast Boy trembled as he looked her up and down. "You have no fear... Why did you have to..."

"I did it..." Terra uttered, tossing from side to side in Beast Boy's arms. She tensed and inhaled sharply and relaxed. "I did it... like I said... I am not evil. I am _not_... Ah–" The curt cry of pain made Beast Boy gasp. He held her like a porcelain doll that might break at any second, and yet he wanted so badly to let her know that he was there by her side and would never leave. She opened her eyes, looking delirious and smiled up at him. "Beast Boy... I don't think I can..."

"Sh..." he said, hushing her. "You don't have to speak, you don't have to do anything, just concentrate on breathing... This isn't right. You just have to rest and everything will be... What's this? Terra, there's something wet in your hair..." he pulled his hand away and felt like someone dunked his head in ice water when he saw it was covered in blood. "Terra, you're hurt, you need help– Oh God... It's everywhere..."

She smiled up at him through the rain that matted her hair and thinned her blood. "You knew it would come to this..."

"But I'd hoped..." said Beast Boy, looking at her fading body. "I had dreamed that you could... you could live out your life like I never could. You had to survive this, you couldn't..."

"I had to..." she said, her voice failing her. "I finally showed them..."

"You had nothing to prove," Beast Boy spat, sounding bitter as he trembled with suppressed misery. "You didn't have to do anything. We would have found another way, we could have... Oh, Terra, I just don't want you to go through any more pain..."

She reached up and held his cheek. "Don't worry, Beast Boy, I don't feel any pain..." she whispered to him. "A little fall of rain can hardly hurt me now. You're here... That's all I need to know." Beast Boy smiled to give her hope and stroked her hair tenderly, speechless. She looked up at him trembling, her eyes as blue as oceans as they sparkled in the dawn. She was out of breath but smiling up at him regardless. "And you'll keep me safe. And you'll keep me close. And rain will make the flowers grow..."

"You'll be OK, Terra, oh God!" Beast Boy panted, his heart heaving. "If I could save you with anything I had... I don't know what to do, I wish you could just have what I never could..."

"Just hold me now, and let it be..." Terra said, soothingly, grasping his hand and pulling it tighter around her. "What's done is done. So shelter me... Comfort me..."

He tried to warm her with his body since he could find no blanket to shroud this dying miracle. "You would live a hundred years if I could show you how," Beast Boy said with a desperate smile, trying to hold her closer without putting her in pain. "I won't desert you now..."

"This rain can't hurt me now..." said Terra. She looked into his eyes, her deep blue orbs peering endlessly into his shallow dead ones. "You'll see, this rain will wash away the past... And you'll keep me safe. And you'll keep me close. And I'll finally sleep in your embrace..." Terra coughed and shook her head, trying her hardest to stay conscious and aware, wanting to see Beast Boy one last time... She ran her hand through his hair, her fingers cold and trembling, broken and sore. She looked up and though the sky was blurred behind his head, she could see a light shining through.

"The rain that brings you here is heaven blessed!" She reached out towards the sky, looking beyond him, acting wildly delirious. "The sky begins to clear, and I'm at rest. Beast Boy... A breath away from where you are... I've come home... from _so_ far." And Beast Boy pulled her into a tight embrace as she shivered in the cold, her head lolling on his shoulder and he trembled as he held her then. She played with his hair with bloody fingers. There was no where in the world she'd rather be. She leaned in close to his ear and began to whisper.

"So don't worry, Beast Boy, I don't feel any pain..."

"Hush, Terra..." Beast Boy whispered into her hair, breathing her in, his eyes closed as he imagined a part of her glory entwining itself with his soul. "You won't feel any pain. I promise. Just relax and soon, it'll all be OK, you'll see. This rain can't hurt you... Not while I'm here..."

"That's all I need to know..." Terra laughed. Beast Boy laid her down on his lap and took her hand tightly in both of his.

"Just relax, Terra," he said, kissing her forehead sweetly and then her cold lips. "And soon... you will be where I am..."

"Just stay here..." Terra whispered, hallucinating. "Please, that's all..."

"I'll stay with you until you're... s-sleeping..." Beast Boy promised with a whisper. The words had been hard for him to say.

"And rain..." Terra breathed, barely getting the words out.

"And rain..." Beast Boy repeated, his voice barely audible as he kissed her cheek, his heart threatening to tear lose from his eyes.

"Will make the flowers..." Terra's breath shook but it rang in his ear.

"Will make the flowers..." Beast Boy nodded, whispering into her hair. Terra took in a sharp breath and went rigid and then limp in Beast Boy's arms. Beast Boy quivered a moment. "Grow..." The word was mouthed, barely uttered at all and he felt the tears white hot in his throat, trailing down his cheeks. He had lost her again. And he had sworn history wouldn't repeat itself. She had betrayed them and redeemed herself all over again. It was too much for him. He hugged and kissed her, desperately hoping she was still there. But he knew better.

It was too much. Even if he had lived, he wondered how he would have faced the horrors of what life brought. Demons was one thing. Heartache was something else. He looked up at the gray clouds which continued to pour down their unforgiving tears. No light at all. Not without her.

He stood then and dried his eyes only to notice that the streets around him were deserted. He had barely noticed. When Terra died, that had been all that had mattered. But now, he wondered what had happened to the battle that had raged so mercilessly around them. Where were the soldiers? Had they won?

He wandered about aimlessly hoping to find a sign of life. Finally, he came to a street far away from where Terra's body lay. A mass of people were crowding this one thing in the center, but Beast Boy couldn't make out what was going on as he looked on, blankly. For the first time in his afterlife, everything felt so surreal, like he didn't belong, like he never had. He looked at his hands. They were translucent. He was fading and he was smiling.

"BB!"

The triumphant call had come from that champion of souls, the balance, the one who kept them all together, even when they were falling apart. Slowly, Beast Boy turned to greet him, giving him a faint smile as he was enveloped in metal and flesh, a triumphant embrace from an old friend.

"Damn!" Cyborg exclaimed excitedly. "Did you _see_ that? Rob and Rae took 'em out, took 'em _all_ out just like that! One big blast of white and like an a-bomb they all dropped dead. All but us, I mean."

"What are you talking about?" Beast Boy asked faintly, vaguely aware of Cyborg's touch. Cyborg pulled away and looked at him, grinning. He didn't seem to notice Beast Boy's transparency.

"Look around you, man!" Cyborg said. "I don't know how she did it, but she was right, she was right. It all worked out in the end, just like she said it would. They're gone, all of them, all the demons that should have never come to this world. It's over man... It's over." He frowned and looked Beast Boy up and down. "Hey, dude... Where's Terra?"

His heart screamed in his chest but Beast Boy was silent as he stared up at the sky. "She's gone," he said quietly, looking at the rain clouds. "I told her I'd catch up with her later."

"She's missing one hell of a celebration!" Cyborg roared.

He ushered Beast Boy through the crowd to the center of everyone's attention. To Beast Boy's mild surprise they made a path for them as they walked to meet Robin and Raven in each other's arms and Starfire embracing them both. Upon seeing her friends, Starfire took to the air and nearly knocked Cyborg off his feet, laughing with mirth.

"We have defeated the armies!" she cried exuberantly. "We have saved the world! Chrona is thrilled! She was always on our side."

"I'm sure she was," said Cyborg, laughing himself. "I'm sure she was."

Beast Boy approached Raven and Robin who were smiling at Starfire and Cyborg's elation.

"So you two did it then, together, just like Karen said, eh?" he said, dully.

"You mean _you_ knew what she meant _too_?" Raven asked, exasperated.

Beast Boy favored her with a toothy grin. "Of course. It was obvious."

"Yeah, I guess we did," Robin said, watching Raven inscrutably a moment.

"Now what are you two gonna do?" Beast Boy asked. "Go to Disney Land?"

Raven cocked an eyebrow. "Hardly," she said.

Robin shrugged. "Well, we did promise Raven we'd leave her alone when this was all finished."

"That was back when I still hated you," Raven pointed out. She bit her lip and was quiet a moment. "But I don't know... I suppose now that we've saved the world, anything could happen."

Robin pulled her close to him and smiled at her. "I don't know. I was hoping we could go home, relax, do some crime fighting every now and then, get Cy to watch the kid."

Raven's eyes doubled in size as she laughed. "Kid? What kid, I never said anything about any kid."

"You're right," Robin nodded. "Shoulda said 'kids.' We should have at least three, don't you think?"

The smile left Raven's face. "I hate children."

Robin kissed her. "We'll fix that."

"Three cheers for the Champions of Ragnorak!" called Josh out of the crowd. And they all responded, shouting cheers of respect in all their different languages and the city was roaring with celebration.

Beast Boy turned his back on the crowd and began to walk away.

"Yo, Beast Boy, my man!" Cyborg called after him as he reached an alley way. "Where are you going?"

Beast Boy stopped a moment and then turned to face his old friend. "I'm going to see Terra," he said simply with a strong smile. And as he walked into the shadows of the alley, he disappeared until all that remained was the echoes of his footsteps.

Cyborg walked over to Starfire who had separated herself from the celebration. "What's up with you?"

She smiled sadly and shrugged. "I am glad that Loki was defeated," she said. "But I still feel as though I have suffered a great loss."

"You have," Cyborg reminded her. "And it's OK to grieve that loss. And I have to tell you, Starfire, I really admire you. No matter what the situation is or how many gray areas there are, you always seem to do the right thing."

"Then why does this feel so... wrong..." she asked painfully.

Cyborg embraced her and kissed her softly on the forehead. "You'll be OK in time. You have a good heart, and a heart like yours won't be lonely for long. Trust me."

Starfire pulled away and smiled up at him. "You are truly a good friend, Cyborg," she said to him.

"So what are you going now that this is all done?" he asked.

Starfire shrugged. "I believe I shall go continue my apprenticeship with Chrona. She still has much to teach me about being a God. This may be the last time you see me, but do not think that I will ever stop looking after you."

"Believe me," said Cyborg. "Even when you disappeared, I had no doubt you never stopped doing that."

He put his arm around her as they watched the armies of the Triad of Light celebrate. Josh and his father, who had obviously reconciled were hugging and Louis ruffled his son's hair as though Josh were a child. Robin and Raven were laughing and enjoying being in each other's presence. An Azarath demon and a Australian soldier popped open a bottle of champagne a Lorethelian wizard had conjured. People were happy. The world continued to spin. And, at least at that moment, it looked as though it would continue to do so for a while to come.

Starfire looked at Cyborg. "And what do you believe you shall do to occupy your time now that you have saved the world?"

Cyborg looked at her with a wry smile. "I guess I'll just wait," he said, "until I have to save it again."

END

_Do you hear the people sing  
Lost in the valley of the night?  
It is the music of a people  
Who are climbing to the light.  
For the wretched of the earth  
There is a flame that never dies.  
Even the darkest night will end  
And the sun will rise.  
They will live again in freedom  
In the garden of the Lord.  
They will walk behind the plowshare,  
They will put away the sword.  
The chain will be broken  
And all men will have their reward.  
Will you join in our crusade?  
Who will be strong and stand with me?  
Somewhere beyond the barricade  
Is there a world you long to see?  
Do you hear the people sing?  
Say do you hear the distant drums?  
It is the future that they bring  
When tomorrow comes...  
Tomorrow comes!_

-- Les Miserables, Finale


End file.
